Christison was born and raised in Los Angeles, California and had a rough upbringing which fueled his interest to begin mixed martial arts. He studied traditional Chinese martial arts before learning Brazilian jiu-jitsu and then transitioned into mixed martial arts. He can claim both Hispanic and Native American ancestry.
Mixed martial arts career
At 6'8" and 265 lbs, Christison was a Heavyweight who fought chiefly with a submission wrestling style.[citation needed] Christison fought out of Albuquerque, New Mexico. Christison became a contestant on the second season of The Ultimate Fighter after Kerry Schall was forced to withdraw due to injury (Christison's dramatic submission win over Ben Rothwell at Euphoria 3 in Atlantic City on February 26, 2005 is widely cited as the reason for Christison being chosen to replace Schall). Nicknamed "Big Dan" (a nickname given to him by Dana White during the show) Christison and Dan "The Sandman" Christison, he lost his first fight on the show, a quarterfinal match with Seth Petruzelli in which Christison lost by unanimous decision after he had inadvertently kicked Petruzelli twice in the groin area.
Christison was 0-6 lifetime in fights that went to a decision (not counting the loss to Petruzelli which is officially classed as an exhibition bout) and 20-1 in fights that were decided by knockout or submission (the lone loss coming via a doctor stoppage).
Christison and his wife, the former Kyria McBrayer, have (as of July 2024) a 13 year-old son, (John) Rylan. The family resides in Dale, Indiana, near where Mrs. Christison was born and raised.
