UFC Fight Night 89’s main card will feature a lightweight tilt between Olivier Aubin-Mercier (7-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) and Frenchman Thibault Gouti (11-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC).
Canadian prospect Aubin-Mercier had his three-fight winning streak snapped in his last outing, a unanimous decision loss to Carlos Diego Ferreira. He holds two submission victories in the UFC over Jake Lindsey and David Michaud and a unanimous decision win over Tony Sims. He lost his UFC debut via unanimous decision to fellow Canadian Chad Laprise.
Gouti lost his only UFC fight via first round submission to Teemu Packalen in 24 seconds. Before that, he had started his professional MMA career at 11-0, so he’ll be looking to rebound.
This appears to be a classic striker vs. grappler match-up, or at least it will play out as one. Aubin-Mercier averages over three takedowns per match and is good at finding submissions once the fight hits the mat. Gouti wasn’t able to land a strike in his last match before being subbed by Packalen. Gouti likely holds the edge over Aubin-Mercier in the stand-up department, so expect the Canadian to shoot for takedowns and make it a wrestling match.
Of the two prospects, Aubin-Mercier has a higher ceiling and appears to be further along in his development than Gouti. If “The Quebec Kid” can avoid Gouti’s power and take the fight to the mat, it’s his fight to lose. Fans can expect Aubin-Mercier to submit Gouti at some point, likely within the first two rounds.