John Thomas Dodson III (born September 26, 1984) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the flyweight division of Rizin Fighting Federation. A professional mixed martial arts competitor since 2004, Dodson has made a name for himself fighting mainly in the Southwest region. He was the winner of the Spike TV's The Ultimate Fighter: Team Bisping vs. Team Miller and competed in Ultimate Fighting Championship where he was a two-time title challenger, competing most recently in the bantamweight division, and is a veteran of the promotion with 9 years of competition. Personal life Dodson was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He grew up in Albuquerque and later moved to Edgewood, New Mexico, with his family. He attended Moriarty High School in Moriarty, New Mexico. Dodson is half African-American, half Filipino. While attending Moriarty, Dodson competed in track, football and wrestling. In wrestling, Dodson was a two-time state champion, one time state runner-up and four time district champion. Dodson graduated from high school in 2003, and then enrolled at the University of New Mexico while working at a local Chuck E. Cheese's restaurant. Dodson's mother raised him and his brother, Eric, as a single parent. His favorite Filipino food is Pancit. Dodson has daughters named Delilah Skye and Aurora Rose with his wife Chelsea. Mixed martial arts career Dodson began training MMA in 2002 after Chris Luttrell, and Greg Jackson recruited him for his extensive wrestling background. After the first day of training he "fell in love with the sport" and continued to train daily with Jackson. Dodson competed in a Grappler's Quest and won in the beginner level. Four months later he did another submission tournament, winning that at the intermediate level. Six months later Dodson competed in his first amateur fight. He competed in one other amateur bout before turning pro. Dodson was offered to make his debut in Japan against the number one ranked flyweight in the world, Yasuhiro Urushitani. Dodson lost the fight via decision. With the lack of fights materializing at flyweight, Dodson began taking fights at featherweight and bantamweight as well. He obtained a 3–2 record before taking a fight against future WEC fighter, Clint Godfrey, winning the fight via decision. With the win over Godfrey, Dodson was selected to be a part of the second season of the Tapout Reality show. Despite having a 1–1 record under the Ultimate Warrior Challenge promotion,