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Tommy Morrisson | Montreal's Latest Homegrown Talent
Undefeated Flyweight Talks Balancing Fighting And School Ahead Of Samourai MMA 14
Tommy Morrisson is pursuing two goals on parallel tracks at the moment, chasing his mixed martial arts dreams inside the Samourai MMA cage while working to complete his computer engineering degree at Concordia University at the same time.
“Hopefully I’ll be done by December,” said the 26-year-old regarding his degree, just a few days out from his return to action against Christopher Daniel at Samourai MMA 14 on Friday evening in Montreal.
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Balancing his three classes per semester — “It’s the max I can do; four is a little too much,” he said — and multiple training sessions per day is a lot to handle, but by all accounts and indications, the flyweight prospect is handling it all with aplomb.
In addition to sporting an unbeaten record, Morrisson has one of the top talents in the country singing his praises, as well, as when I asked his teammate at Montreal’s Tristar Gym Aiemann Zahabi about the ascending competitor, the ranked UFC bantamweight called him a “huge prospect” with “very solid all-around skills,” praising his dedication and work ethic.
“I’m really grateful he said those things about me,” Morrisson said upon hearing Zahabi’s remarks. “I believe I work hard, I train hard, and I train so hard that there is no doubt in my mind. If people around me can realize it, it’s amazing.
“The work ethic comes from my father,” continued the 8-0 prospect, who went 7-1 as an amateur before transitioning to the professional ranks in 2022. “He’s been really present in my career, throughout my years of school.
“He’s always told me, ‘If you do MMA, it’s a sport you do at 100 percent, because you get in the cage and you might get hit in the face, so you can’t not be prepared; you can’t not be ready mentally.’ The work ethic comes from that, and I realized when I started fighting that you have to give it 110 percent.”
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While the popularity of the sport has continued to expand across the country and the proliferation of gyms growing alongside of it, Montreal remains arguably the biggest hub for MMA in Canada, boasting an outstanding collection of gyms and training options, as well as being the home of Samourai MMA.
That means that not only does Morrisson have access to world-class training, but his transition to the professional ranks coincided with the launch of the Montreal-based promotion, giving him a place where he has been able to log two or three fights per year without worry, something that hasn’t always been available to emerging talents in this country.
Each are positives that the thoughtful rising star is both aware and appreciative of as he continues working to climb the ranks on the regional circuit in hopes of eventually getting the opportunity to compete on the biggest stage in the sport.
“I’m really happy that I was born and live in Montreal because the sport of MMA is pretty big in Montreal, and it’s getting even bigger,” began Morrisson, who earned a unanimous decision win over Max Quinones in a non-title, three-round fight last time out in November. “I think we have gyms for everything and we have great coaches, especially Firas (Zahabi), who is a pioneer in the sport.
“Being able to train with these guys has helped me a lot. Sometimes I go do training camps — I went to Vegas, I went to France — and it’s nice to go, because you get (to expand your mind) by being elsewhere, but the level at home is the best I’ve seen around.
“I’m extremely grateful for Samourai,” continued the French-Canadian fighter. “They started around the same time I was going to turn pro, and Daniel Lafond, the promoter of Samourai, is a really nice man; he takes care of his fighters and puts on shows. I’m really grateful for this organization.
“I like to fight at home, of course,” he added. “I wouldn’t mind fighting (away from) home, but the opportunity is right there, it’s such a good organization, so I have no good reason to go anywhere else.”
This week is another “home game” for Morrisson as he welcomes Daniel to Montreal, but Friday’s Samourai event isn’t only MMA show in town this week, as the UFC is set to take over the Bell Centre the following evening for UFC 315.
For Morrisson, his return to action this week has been a long time coming, as he was initially slated to make his 2025 debut in March before his opponent Gabe Sagman was forced to withdraw due to an injury. He’s essentially stayed in camp since, and is now itching to make the walk and continue his winning ways.
“I believe the experience from my last fight, and every fight I’ve had before,” he explained when asked what has allowed him to step up his game in relation to an Instagram post sporting the caption “Never been so ready” posted a couple days earlier. “Every fight I’m getting better, getting more comfortable in the cage; I put so much work into these fights.
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“I was supposed to fight on March 7th, but my opponent pulled out, so I was ready to do five rounds then. Now we have the chance to fight on May 9th, which is even better. I was ready two months ago and I’m even more ready now. I feel like nothing can stop me.”
For the promising 125-pounder, the potential of members of the UFC team being in attendance on Friday night is intriguing, but he showed his focus and understanding of the bigger picture by keeping things centered on the task at hand.
“I think it’s cool, I like the opportunity, he said of competing during the week the UFC is in town. “It’s nice, but, at the end of the day, when the bell rings, it’s the same thing regardless of who is outside of the cage; it’s just you and your opponent.”
Looking ahead to this week’s title defense, Morrisson is confident that he’ll be able to replicate the effort he put forward in November, and if he’s indeed able to do so, that a finish will come before the 25 minutes he’s been allotted will have expired.
“It’s a good opportunity to showcase my skills, just like my last fight,” he began. “I was really dominant, I won all three rounds. If I do the same on this fight as I did my last fight, then I can get the finish before the five rounds (are up).”
After that, it’s back to school for the summer, as he wants to remain on track to complete his degree this year, so that next year can be focused exclusively on fighting.
“The goal this year is to win this next fight, and after, I would like to do one other fight this year, so that I can finish school,” outlined Morrisson. “And then maybe get a contract by 2026, but not necessarily early in 2026.
“We’re not in a hurry; if we get the call, we get the call.”
Undefeated and with his priorities in order? Something tells me we’ll be hearing a lot more from Morrisson in the not-too-distant future.