Olivier Aubin-Mercier says PFL lightweight title fight against Stevie Ray may be his retirement bout: “I don’t know if I have one more year in me”

Olivier Aubin-Mercier could be fighting for the final time on Friday.

Aubin-Mercier is set to face Stevie Ray for the PFL lightweight title in the championship event from the Hulu Theater in New York City. To get to the final, the Canadian beat Natan Schulte and Alex Martinez in the regular season. In the semifinals, he defeated Martinez again to set up the showdown with Ray.

“I think his semifinal was 50/50, so I’m not surprised,” Aubin-Mercier said on Just Scrap Radio on BJPENN.com. “But, I am for sure happy for him to be in the final. Pettis made his money, so one more fight for Stevie would be good even though he will make less than I will when I win this. I am happy to see him in the final, but I am not surprised.”

Against Ray, Aubin-Mercier has a ton of confidence entering the scrap. The Canadian believes he is better everywhere which will lead to him getting his hand raised and winning the PFL lightweight title and the million dollars.

“To be honest, I do think I am a little bit better than him everywhere,” Aubin-Mercier said. “His nickname is Braveheart and I know he has a lot of heart so I have to be careful with that. But, I do think I am a little bit better everywhere but he’s a dangerous opponent. I have to be really careful and his style on the ground is very weird…

“I’m going to be ready for everywhere, if it goes five rounds, I’m ready for it,” Aubin-Mercier continued. “If it goes two rounds, I’d be happy. But, I’ll be ready for it to go the distance.”

If Olivier Aubin-Mercier does defeat Stevie Ray and become the PFL lightweight champion, he believes it would be great for his legacy. He has trained alongside Georges St-Pierre for years, so he says winning a world title is more important than the million dollars that comes with it.

“It would be great for retirement to win the belt,” Aubin-Mercier explained. “It would be really great, in Quebec, there was GSP who won the biggest belt but other than that, nobody has won a big belt in a big promotion. I’d be the second person to win a major title. And, with that, comes opportunity. For me, the belt is more important than money.”

Should Aubin-Mercier get his hand raised on Friday against Ray, he revealed it could be the final fight of his career. The 33-year-old will have fought 22 times as a pro as well as two more times on TUF.

With that, he isn’t sure if his body can handle another season in PFL. Along with that, Aubin-Mercier believes ending his career by winning the title would be the perfect way to go out.

“I think I have one more season on the contract, but I’m not actually sure. If I’m the champion I don’t think I’ll be allowed to leave, but the question is, will I fight again? I don’t know if I have one more year in me. It’s really tough to fight this much and in two years I will be doing six fights,” Aubin-Mercier revealed. “That’s a lot, so if it’s the end I’ll be happy. I will see after the fight how I feel and will make a decision… Yeah for sure (this could be my final fight).”

Do you think Olivier Aubin-Mercier will beat Stevie Ray in the PFL finals?