Regan Upshaw has always bet on himself. He attended a Clemson football camp without playing organised football. He walked away from a potential NFL career after winning two national championships. He relocated alone to Denver to chase a dream in a sport he had barely started. The pattern is consistent, and it has worked every time.

The 28-year-old Tampa native makes his professional MMA debut at ONE Fight Night 44: Jarvis vs. Rungrawee II on Prime Video on Friday, June 26, facing Britain’s Paul “King of the North” Elliott in heavyweight MMA, live in U.S. primetime from Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

The football chapter alone would be enough for most people’s biography. Upshaw came to the sport late, starting at 15, largely self-directed and untethered from the organised pathway most college recruits follow. He showed up at a Clemson camp by chance, produced enough to earn an opportunity, and spent six seasons with the Tigers winning two NCAA College Football National Championships. He looks back on the programme with genuine affection and no regret.

“Clemson was awesome. Clemson has an amazing culture, and I’m very grateful for that experience,” he said. “I had some of my best experiences there and also, growing up, some of my hardest experiences there. I’m very grateful for Clemson and that time.”

Walking away from that and from a realistic path to the NFL was the decision that defined what comes next. The offer was there. He chose not to take it.

“The opportunity was on the table. I could have done my pro day, I could have gone and probably made a team doing special teams. I had a bunch of freak numbers,” Upshaw said. “But the reality is football was no longer for me. It served its purpose. It was time for me to do something where I get what I earned. That’s why I wanted to do fighting.”

Combat sports had been in his peripheral vision for years. PRIDE footage watched as a child, an enduring belief that fighting was where his instincts truly lived. When he made it to Denver and High Altitude Martial Arts, he arrived the same way he had arrived at every other opportunity in his life — quietly, without announcement, and ready to work.

“I just went into the normal beginner class and trained like everybody else,” he said. “I didn’t announce myself or what I wanted to do or anything of that nature. I just went to work and started getting noticed.”

The unbeaten run through amateur MMA, Muay Thai, and kickboxing competition that followed confirmed what he already knew about himself. June 26 at Lumpinee Stadium is the next step in a journey built entirely on the same foundation.

“I’ve always been a gamer. I’ve always been confident. I find that I’m a true fighter,” Upshaw said. “You can teach somebody techniques, but when you put yourself in an environment with some of the best coaches and best fighters in the world, and you keep showing up, you’re going to learn pretty quick. That’s what I bet on.”

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