John Cofer

John Lawrence Cofer (born April 29, 1984) is an American mixed martial artist currently fighting in the UFC's lightweight division. A professional MMA competitor since 2008, Cofer has made a name for himself fighting in the Southern United States. He was also a competitor on FX's The Ultimate Fighter: Live.

MMA career
Cofer began wrestling at an early age; he followed the sport through his years in junior high, and high school before moving onto the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga. Cofer wrestled four years with the school before graduating with a Bachelors degree in Sociology.

After helping other fighters work on their wrestling, Cofer decided to give MMA a try. He found a gym looking for a 155 lbs. amateur and took the fight on short notice, and lost. Throughout 2007 and 2008 Cofer dabbled in the sport, taking his first professional fight on May 17, 2008, winning via submission. In 2009 Cofer began to take the sport more serious by upping his training time and taking more fights. Cofer complied a 7-1 record before trying out for The Ultimate Fighter.

The Ultimate Fighter
In February 2012, it was revealed that Cofer was selected to be a participant on The Ultimate Fighter: Live. Cofer defeated Mark Glover via decision to move into the Ultimate Fighter house, and become an official cast member.

Cofer was selected sixth (twelfth overall) by Urijah Faber to take part on Team Faber. In the first round of the competition, Cofer was selected to fight Vinc Pichel. After two close rounds the fight went into a "Sudden Victory" round where Cofer was submitted via an arm-triangle choke. The loss eliminated him from the competition.

Ultimate Fighting Championship
Though Cofer did not win the show, UFC President Dana White decided to sign all sixteen cast members to exclusive UFC contracts. Cofer made his UFC debut on the main card of The Ultimate Fighter: Live Finale on June 1, 2012 in Las Vegas, Nevada against TUF cast mate, Justin Lawrence. He lost via KO due to a head kick in the opening seconds of the third round. The fight was awarded Fight of the Night honors.

In his second UFC fight, Cofer faced Mike Rio on December 15, 2012 at The Ultimate Fighter: Team Carwin vs. Team Nelson Finale. He lost via submission in the third round.

Mixed Martial Arts

 * Ultimate Fighting Championship
 * Fight of the Night (One Time)