Nicholas Meregali is clearly confident that he can beat Felipe Pena in their upcoming match, as he just asked his fans to choose what submission he should finish the fight with. He’s taking things up a notch from his last superfight with Kaynan Duarte at Who’s Number One 19, where he predicted that he would submit his opponent with a triangle choke before he even stepped on the mat. This time he’s giving his fans the choice between either an armbar or a rear-naked choke, and he’ll attempt to submit Pena with one of these two techniques.
It’s definitely a bold move that could very easily backfire now that Pena knows what submissions Meregali is going to be hunting for, but it could also pay off in a big way too. Predicting the submission you’re going to finish an opponent with is something that makes the eventual victory all the more impressive, and it’s something that Meregali’s teammate Gordon Ryan has become known for over the years. Not many grapplers would be willing to do this against fellow elite opposition, and even fewer of them would actually be capable of pulling it off.
Nicholas Meregali and Felipe Pena actually have quite a bit of history together, as they have already met on the mats once before. While Meregali won that first match by submission, it was a gi match that took place all the way back in 2018. The two men have gone back and forth on matches since then, and they’ve been circling each other for quite some time. Pena is eager to get revenge for that loss and Meregali wants to prove just how good he is in no gi competition, so they will now meet in the main event of UFC Fight Pass Invitational 5 to settle the score. Meregali has added an extra layer to the battle now though, and it’ll be interesting to see if he’s able to meet the expectation he’s set for himself.
Nicholas Meregali asked his fans what technique he should use to submit Felipe Pena in a recent post to his official Instagram account:
