Canada's Aubin-Mercier moves within one win of MMA payday

NEW YORK — (The Canadian Gangster) Olivier Aubin-Mercier won a unanimous decision over Paraguay's Alex Martinez on Friday to move into the lightweight final of the Professional Fighters League.

The 33-year-old from Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville, Que., will face Scotland's Stevie (Braveheart) Ray for the 155-pound title and a US$1-million payday.

Aubin-Mercier (16-5-0) knocked Martinez down seconds into both the second and third rounds, controlling him on the ground once they got there.

The judges scored the bout 30-27, 30-26, 30-26 for Aubin-Mercier.

Fourth-seeded Ray (25-10-0) advanced with an upset unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) over former UFC champion Anthony (Showtime) Pettis in the other lightweight semifinal at Madison Square Garden's Hulu Theatre. Pettis (25-14-0) was the top seed in the division.

The Hulu Theatre seats between 2,000 and 5,600 as opposed to the 20,000-capacity Garden.

Unlike other MMA promotions, the Professional Fighters League features a regular season, playoffs and championship. The four fighters in each division who earn the most regular season points advance to the playoffs with the two semifinal winners meeting for the title and a US$1-million payday.

Aubin-Mercier, the No. 2 seed, weighed in at 155 pounds Thursday, while Martinez, the third seed, was 156 pounds.

The two fighters had trained together in the past in Montreal and consider themselves friends. Martinez, now fighting out of Grande Prairie, Alta., walked to the cage Friday with a combination Canadian/ Paraguayan flag.

Aubin-Mercier took the centre of the cage from the start while Martinez looked to connect with kicks from the outside. When Aubin-Mercier lunged in, Martinez (10-3-0 with one no-contest) was content to