‘Magician’ On Tap For BKFC Gold

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) title challenger and Ultimate Fighter winner, John Dodson, will face off against JR Ridge for the inaugural Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) flyweight title at BKFC 48 on Aug. 11 from inside the Tingley Coliseum in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

BKFC made an official announcement on their social media page Thursday. See it below:

Dodson, 38, has been a combat Swiss Army Knife since parting ways with UFC back in Sept. 2020. The former TUF winner and two-time UFC flyweight title challenger has fought six times in total, including stops at RIZIN, XMMA, and BKFC. “Magician” is 5-1 during that span and doesn’t seem to be losing a step later into his career.

Dodson made his initial BKFC debut less than one year ago at BKFC 28 and delivered an epic 40-second knockout finish over fellow UFC veteran Ryan Benoit. In his second appearance inside of the bare knuckle boxing ring Dodson scored a memorable first-round knockout stoppage over Jarod Grant at BKFC KnuckleMania 3 this past February. Both of Dodson’s BKFC fights have been contested in Albuquerque, N.M., which is where the combat veteran is from.

Despite a lengthy career competing in mixed martial arts (MMA) and recently bare knuckle boxing, Dodson has never been stopped by way of strikes. All 13 of his MMA losses have come by way of decision. That’s pretty impressive considering how aggressive and fast Dodson fights.

All in all, this is a great decision for BKFC when it comes to the promotion’s inaugural flyweight title. Dodson is undoubtedly one of the biggest stars on the roster today and a guy who could hold onto the belt for a very long time if successful in winning it at BKFC 48 later this summer.