Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you
can then stream UFC Fight Night 207 “Volkov vs. Rozenstruik” live
on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via
the ESPN app.
The gloves are coming off for former Ultimate Fighting Championship title challenger
John
Dodson.
Bare
Knuckle FC posted on social media on Friday that the
bare-knuckle boxing league had signed ex-UFC mainstay Dodson to a
contract. Dodson moved on from the UFC in 2020, competing twice
more in MMA in 2021 and 2022. This contract, which is not
necessarily exclusive, will put Dodson in the “squared circle” for
BKFC later this year with an undetermined opponent. His debut has
been announced for the Aug. 27 event in his hometown of
Albuquerque, N.M. Of note, BKFC also
recently signed former Dodson foe Jimmie
Rivera.
“The Magician” left the confines of the UFC after going 1-3 in his
last four from 2018 to 2020, and he departed for the XMMA
organization. A bantamweight pairing with former UFC fighter
Cody
Gibson did not go his way, but it followed a horrific car
accident with him and his family. Dodson returned to the win column
in April, taking a hard-fought decision over fellow UFC ex-pat
Francisco
Rivera. The 37-year-old Dodson has never competed as a boxer,
kickboxer or bare-knuckle fighter in his documented career, but he
does celebrate 10 knockout wins on his 22-victory ledger.
Since the legalization of bare-knuckle fighting in the U.S., the
largest BK league of BKFC has drawn attention and a large number of
noteworthy fighters in MMA and boxing. A litany of past UFC
fighters has competed in its ranks, including eventual BKFC champ
Joey
Beltran, Paige
VanZant, Jason
Knight, Hector
Lombard, Ricco
Rodriguez, Kendall
Grove, Chris Lytle,
Chris
Leben, Joe Riggs,
Leonard
Garcia and many more. In 2022 alone, BKFC has staged events in
six different states as well as Thailand, and the league has plans
to head to London for the first time in July.