The Canadian Olivier Aubin-Mercier issued a statement on Instagram following his defeat against Arman Tsarukyan on the main card at UFC 240, this past weekend in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
“Won’t lie, I’m heartbroken,” Aubin-Mercier wrote. “Three consecutive [losses] is not great, when you try to be the best in the world. I was more than ready and was better than ever, [Tsarukyan] was simply the better man. I don’t know what’s going to happen next.
“The only thing I know is that I’m not done. I will be back. I still think I’m getting better every day, I’m healthy and I still have the passion to fight. I love my life and I’m proud of what I accomplished so far, this is just a pretty big bump in my career.”
As for Tsarukyan, he showed off a strong grappling attack round after round that had Aubin-Mercier stuck playing defense, which ultimately cost him the fight with the judges all scoring the fight 29-28 in favor of the Armenian fighter.
Tsarukyan was unbeaten going into his UFC debut with Islam Makhachev. It was a baptism of fire as Makhachev, who trains with Khabib Nurmagomedov, is championship calibre but Tsarukyan surprised everyone with an excellent performance despite losing the decision.
“It was a victory and an OK fight. It definitely wasn’t my best performance. I wish I could have shown the fans more of my game, but I’m just happy to have the victory.” Tsarukyan said.
Aubin-Mercier has now found himself on the wrong side of the decision in his last three outings. He also went on to lose decisions to Alexander Hernandez and Gilbert Burns.
If the Canadian Gangster admits that he does not yet know exactly what he has in store, he intends to put on the gloves again and roll up his sleeves.
“I do not know what will happen next. The only thing I know is that I’m not finished. I will be back. I think I’m getting better every day, I’m healthy and I still have passion. I love my life and I’m proud of what I accomplished. This is just a big ‘pothole’ in my career,” Aubin-Mercier said.
