HOUSTON – Jeremy Dotson has been training to be a fighter for seven years. On June 12, a traumatic accident sent the MMA athlete to the emergency room, and fighting is what he had to do.
“I was out riding the bike, and coming through some traffic, got swiped by a car, looked up, and I’m like, ‘This can’t be real,’” Dotson said.
The 32-year-old lost his leg instantly from the impact. It happened five days before his birthday and changed his life, and pushed back his goals.
“I can still accomplish those things later on down the line, but it just put a halt to it for a while,” said Dotson.
Many people might consider his circumstances devastating, but Jeremy said he’s built for the challenge.
“They always say, ‘God gives his toughest obstacles and trials to his strongest people,’ and I know I’m a strong person,” he said.
He’s conquered difficult situations before. At one time, he weighed 320 pounds and lost the weight to donate a kidney to a loved one. He’s also served as a volunteer firefighter, so he’s not afraid of an obstacle.
“Everything that I’ve done has led me up to all of the events that happened in my life, even up to right now. Being that chosen guy, I know there are a lot of people out there that wouldn’t be able to take half the things that I’ve been through,” said Dotson.
He is still planning to pursue his dreams.
“Oh definitely, I don’t know how it will work with MMA, being the kicks and all that, and (I) will (have a) prosthetic. Maybe it will be somebody out there who wants to go with a one-leg match, maybe that’s what ya’ll want to do, call me! But I’m getting back into that scene.”
He hopes his story inspires others to fight for their life.
“Always, always, always take the positive side, even when you think about what could be going wrong, think about what could be, and will go right,” he said.
Jeremy’s family set up a GoFundMe account to help him pay for medical expenses.