Drew Dober’s UFC journey started back in 2012 when he competed on The Ultimate Fighter 15. Before he got the chance to shine on the UFC stage, Dober built his name fighting in Bellator, Victory Fighting Championship, and Titan FC. Training with the Elevation Fight Team, he’s developed a reputation for his hard-hitting, action-packed fighting style. This has quickly made him a fan favorite. Dober’s relentless energy and knockout power have also endeared him to MMA fans around the world.

Currently tied with Dustin Poirier for the most knockouts in the UFC lightweight division’s history, many fans have also been curious to learn more about Dober’s origins and his early life. So, without further ado, let’s dive in and explore all we know about Drew Dober’s ethnicity, nationality, and more! 

Where is Drew Dober from? Ethnicity and nationality

Drew Dober was born on October 19, 1988, in Omaha, Nebraska, and is an American to his core. Dober grew up with his mother being a single parent and a half-sibling. He didn’t meet his father until he was already an adult at 18 and not much information is available about their relationship.

His journey in combat sports began when he was only 14 as he started training in Muay Thai, which he excelled at. He then went on to claim the Amateur National Championship in the sport twice. In his UFC.com bio, Dober revealed that he fell in love with the dream of becoming a professional fighter after watching his first UFC fight when he was 14 and Muay Thai was his first step towards achieving that goal.

Dober was also an accomplished wrestler in his junior and senior years spent at the Millard North High School and holds a brown belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Ed Shobe from Mid-America Martial Arts. After becoming a brown belt, Dober moved to Colorado where he continues to reside and train out of currently.

All we know about Dober’s parents

Not a lot of information is available about Drew Dober’s parents, but his mother’s name is Denise and she single-handedly raised the UFC star and his half-sibling. As mentioned above, Dober wasn’t introduced to his father until he was an adult. Nevertheless, Dober has managed to build a beautiful family for himself alongside his wife and Denver native Hollis Casey.

The couple has been together for around five years and tied the knot after the UFC star proposed to Casey in 2020. In 2023, they became proud parents to a baby girl and Dober made sure to give her a shout-out after his win over Ricky Glenn at UFC Vegas 80. In his post-fight interview with Daniel Cormier, Dober took the mic and stated, “It’s such a beautiful honor to be able to do this in front of my daughter and I know she’s not gonna care when she’s old enough, I would be old and retired, and then I’m gonna bore her.”

Now, Drew Dober is gearing up to take on Jean Silva with home-field advantage at UFC Fight Night: Namajunas vs Cortez on July 13. It remains to be seen if the hard-hitting lightweight can etch his name in the history books with another spectacular knockout giving him the edge over ‘The Diamond’s 9 finishes in the 155 lbs. division.