John Dodson Talks Eddie Wineland, Cards Against Humanity, MMA Judging

John Dodson Talks Eddie Wineland, Cards Against Humanity, MMA Judging

Former UFC flyweight title challenger John Dodson talks Eddie Wineland and the problem with MMA judging.

Mar 10, 2017 by Tony Reid
John Dodson Talks Eddie Wineland, Cards Against Humanity, MMA Judging
UFC bantamweight John Dodson is one of the most electrifying and energetic fighters on the entire roster, both inside and outside of the Octagon.

The longtime Jackson-Wink MMA student steps back into the cage to face inaugural WEC bantamweight champion Eddie Wineland April 22 at UFC Fight Night 108 in Nashville, Tennessee. If past performance predicts future results, there is a very real possibility this scrap will end long before the final bell.

Dodson fully intends to add Wineland's name to his already impressive resume of concussed opponents.

"He is going to throw punches," Dodson said. "I am going to counter and I am going to hit him until I knock him out. I am not looking to wrestle with him and I know he's not going to try to wrestle with me. We will see what happens."

The five-foot-three-inch ball of energy has exhibited devastating and nearly unheard of knockout power previously as a flyweight and now as a bantamweight. Five of his six wins inside the Octagon have come by way of knockout. As one of the most explosive fighters in the sport, Dodson reveals that he is planning on digging deeper into his bag of tricks against the heavy-handed and gritty Wineland to earn yet another stoppage.

"I am getting ready to throw some of the wildest stuff ever so I can get back to being 'The Magician' that I once was," Dodson said. "Slowly but surely I am doing my thing and getting into the groove of things. Lando (Vannata) won't be the only Groovy King out there."

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Oct 1, 2016; Portland, OR, USA; John Lineker (red gloves) fights against John Dodson (blue gloves) during UFC Fight Night at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Jaime Valdez-USA TODAY Sports

Any good illusionist is constantly pushing the envelope in order to further master their craft and take their skill set to the next level, all while keeping the competition guessing. Dodson is no different. He explains the magic show is just beginning and fans can expect an even bigger fight-finishing show moving forward.

"I am working on improving myself," Dodson said. "I am making sure that I am more of a devastating striker than ever before. I need new tricks. Everybody has seen the things I have thrown in the past. I need to combine those techniques with other movements to make it easier to execute those moves. If I have to throw a fancy spinning hook kick or try a takedown here or there or even throw a submission out there, I will do whatever I have to do to land that devastating strike."

Dodson feels the judges of his most recent fight, a UFC Fight Night headliner against John Lineker this past October, used some type of scorecard smoke and mirror act when he suffered a very a questionable split-decision loss.

"We went in there to do battle," Dodson said. "I thought I came out on top. The rest of the world thought I came out on top. Even he thought I won until he heard the judges' scores. People asked me that question a lot. How do I think John Lineker won that fight? I have no idea. I landed more strikes. I hit him more. And his face looked like chopped liver."

The recent questionable decision losses unfortunately don't stop there for Team Jackson-Wink as Dodson's teammate and former women's bantamweight champion Holly Holm had a razor thin decision loss to Germaine de Randamie in February at UFC 208. As he and his teammates suffer to swallow tough losses on the cards, Dodson has a few interesting thoughts as to how he handles the judges' opinions and what can be done to get better and more consistent judging in MMA.

"Having a unified system would work," Dodson said. "Every judge wants to do their own thing. There aren't that many people that know what's going on well enough to be qualified to judge a fight. Whoever is judging, you have to do certain things to please them. It's like playing Cards Against Humanity. You play the cards, not as far as what is funniest to you, but what you think will be funniest to that person so you can win them over and get that black card. It's the same thing in MMA.

"You have to win over the judges by whatever their criteria is to get the victory. It could be power striking, moving forward, being really technical, it could be anything. That's how I see it in my head."