When the
Professional Fighters League signed
Olivier
Aubin-Mercier two years ago, it did so in the hope that he
might finally unlock the rest of his potential.
The 33-year-old Canadian will open his 2022 campaign against
American Top Team’s
Natan
Schulte at
PFL 1 this Wednesday at Esports Stadium Arlington in Arlington,
Texas. Aubin-Mercier enters the cage on the heels of back-to-back
victories. He last appeared at PFL 7 on Aug. 13, when he laid claim
to a three-round unanimous decision over fellow
Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran
Darrell
Horcher.
As Aubin-Mercier makes final adjustments ahead of his forthcoming
battle with Schulte, here are five things you might not know about
him:
1. MMA met him with little resistance.
Aubin-Mercier took out his first four opponents in 5:39 combined.
None of the four fights reached the two-minute mark. He made his
professional debut as a 22-year-old prospect at Ringside MMA 12,
where he submitted
Guy Poulin in
just 58 seconds on Oct. 21, 2011.
2. No one has broken him.
All five of Aubin-Mercier’s losses have come by decision. He has
been outpointed by
Arman
Tsarukyan,
Gilbert
Burns,
Alexander
Hernandez,
Diego
Ferreira and
Chad
Laprise.
3. He handled his baptism by fire.
Aubin-Mercier was a finalist on “The Ultimate Fighter Nations” in
2014. He captured a unanimous decision over Jake Mathews in the
qualifying round and submitted
Richard
Walsh with a rear-naked choke in the semifinals before dropping
a unanimous verdict to the aforementioned Laprise in the final.
Aubin-Mercier compiled a 7-5 record with the UFC—he beat
Jake
Lindsey,
David
Michaud,
Tony Sims,
Thibault
Gouti,
Drew Dober,
Anthony
Rocco Martin and
Evan Dunham
inside the Octagon—before signing with the PFL as a free agent in
March 2020.
4. Savages sharpen his spear.
“The Canadian Gangster” operates out of the H20 MMA camp in
Montreal. However, he has also spent time at the famed
Tristar Gym, where he has trained under the direction of Firas
Zahabi and alongside former UFC welterweight champion
Georges St.
Pierre, one of the greatest mixed martial artists of
all-time.
5. He understands his strengths.
Aubin-Mercier holds the rank of black belt in judo and brown belt
in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. As such, it should come as no surprise that
he has delivered eight of his 13 career wins by submission: seven
by rear-naked choke and one by inverted triangle kimura.