Undefeated Worcester native Fran Collins fights for middleweight MMA title at Foxwoods
Fran “The Fury” Collins is ready and raring to rumble.
The 38-year-old Worcester native and Millbury resident returns to the octagon Saturday night when he takes on fellow 185-pounder Tim “The Bear” Caron in a middleweight Mixed Martial Arts title bout and main event on a 12-fight card at Foxwoods Resort Casino in Ledyard, Connecticut.
“The hard work is over,” Collins said Tuesday. “It’s been an awesome fight camp. I’m excited (Providence, Rhode Island, promotional company) CES has given me the opportunity to fight for the 185 belt.
“My opponent is a veteran, well rounded, (but) nothing I’m too concerned with. It’s going to be a good fight one way or the other. I’m eager to get in there to be honest with you.”
Collins comes in 5-0 as a professional and will be fighting for the third time in 10 months following a 10-year layoff due to alcoholism. He’s proudly been sober for three years.
All of Collins’ wins have come by submission or knockout with three ending in the first round.
“I was taught not to leave it in the ref’s hands,” Collins said. “I put in a lot of work — as do a lot of other fighters — but I feel the one thing I do that makes me stand out is I put the work in. A lot of work, a lot of hours, a lot of training.
“I like to credit myself as being one of the hardest workers in the room, if not always, most of the time. That’s what I bring; I bring my gas tank and my no-quit personality.”
Collins has been training at Double Play Sports & Fitness in Leicester; Squared BJJ Worcester, a martial arts training facility in Worcester owned by his head coach, Gabe Gonzaga; at Team Link Muay Thai in Worcester with coach Scott Handley; and at Unrivaled Training, a strength and conditioning gym in Worcester, with coach Matt Carroll.
“I have a few gyms that I’m fortunate they let me go to,” a grateful Collins said. “Pretty much everybody has made this happen and to be brutally honest, I’m just ready to go and get this done.”
Caron, a35-year old gym owner who fights out of Manchester, New Hampshire, comes in 12-5 (5 KOs). An alum of “Dana White’s Contender Series,” he has won three of his last four fights and, apparently, is very confident in his abilities.
“From my understanding, he’s had some predictions on what he thinks is going to happen with the fight,” Collins said. “I guess we’ll just see.”
The action gets underway at 6:30 p.m. Saturday at the Great Cedar Showroom with five amateur bouts, including Worcester’s Artur Minev taking off fellow unbeaten lightweight Justin Graves of Connecticut, leading up to seven pro fights topped by Collins-Caron.
Tickets for the nearly sold-out event can be purchased at cesboxing.com or foxwoods.com.
—Contact Rich Garven at rgarven@telegram.com. Follow him on Twitter @RichGarvenTG.
This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Worcester native Collins fights for middleweight MMA title at Foxwoods
