Photo used with permission from Samourai MMA
The future looked bright for Fred Dupras last September, when the 9-1 professional mixed martial artist signed a contract with Bellator MMA, one of the few heavyweight MMA organizations.
It was expected that the 31-year-old from Laval, Quebec, who trains under Coach Richard Ho at H2O MMA, would have his first Bellator fight in early 2025, but with the sudden closure of Bellator in mid-January, that plan quickly ended.
Bellator had been acquired by the Professional Fighter’s League (PFL) some time before, and some Bellator fighters were migrated into that organization, while others unfortunately saw their contracts voided.
The PFL must have seen something in Dupras, however, as MM-EH has found out that they have signed him to a new multi-fight contract, after he had already signed last September to fight for them under the Bellator umbrella.
The PFL operates in a tournament format, and the PFL 2025 World Tournament starts on April 3rd, so Dupras could be competing as early as that.
Dupras went 6-1 as an amateur and had his first professional bout in the legendary Quebec-based TKO organization, but it was in Samourai MMA where he truly made his mark.
Dupras went 6-0 in Samourai, culminating with a guillotine choke submission victory over Jesse Arnett at Samourai MMA 11 last August where he was crowned the Samourai Featherweight Champion.
MM-EH spoke with Dupras and asked him how he felt when he discovered that he would be fighting in the PFL instead of Bellator.
“I’m just happy to be in a major league,” he told us, “I feel excited and happy.”
His enthusiasm radiated out of the speaker, and he continued,
“I’m just ready, you know?”
“For me it’s the time.”
“I know it’s going to be my year.”
“You know when you feel it? I just feel it.”
Yes, Fred, we know.