LAS VEGAS -- Defending PFL lightweight champion Olivier Aubin-Mercier spoiled the PFL debut of 2022 free agent signee Shane Burgos to earn three regular-season points late Friday night.
Aubin-Mercier (18-5) defeated Burgos (15-4) via unanimous decision inside The Theater at Virgin Hotel. The 2022 finalist used a well-rounded plan to keep Burgos guessing on the feet, and frustrated in grappling exchanges in the later rounds.
Burgos, of Monroe, New York, was never in any real danger during the three-round fight, but he struggled to disengage from Aubin-Mercier in wrestling positions. He resorted to complaining to the referee in the third round, accusing Aubin-Mercier of stalling.
The fight ended with a last-second blitz by Burgos, in which he opened a cut over Aubin-Mercier's eye, but it was too late. Burgos, 32, falls to 0-1 in the PFL, while Aubin-Mercier's quest for a repeat title is off to a strong start.
Welterweight Sadibou Sy (15-6-2), another 2022 PFL champion, kicked off the year with a second-round TKO against Jarrah Al-Silawi. According to the PFL scoring system, Sy earned five points for the finish.
After one event, the lightweight division is entrenched in a five-way tie, as there were no finishes in the division in the opening round of the regular season. Aubin-Mercier, Clay Collard, Bruno Miranda, Natan Schulte and Raush Manfio are all tied with three points. Three of those five names have previously won a championship in the PFL.
Among welterweights, Magomed Umalatov, Carlos Leal and Magomed Magomedkerimov will head into the second round tied for first place after six-point finishes. Sy sits in fourth place with his five points, with Nayib Lopez in fifth after to a decision win over Shane Mitchell.
The 155- and 170-pound divisions will continue the regular season in June at PFL 6 in Atlanta.
