Ben Askren News

Cole Shelton - December 22, 2020

Jake Paul and Ben Askren are set to box in March of next year. In the lead-up to Paul’s fight against Nate Robinson, the YouTuber had called out Askren among several other UFC fighters. After Paul won, the callouts only increased and now, according to Chael Sonnen, the fight is happening.

Harry Kettle - December 18, 2020

Retired MMA star Ben Askren has taken a shot at Jake Paul for getting “hammered” by former Bellator fighter AJ Agazarm. After recent footage emerged of Paul sparring with Agazarm and seemingly getting the upper hand, many were wondering whether or not it would open the door for a fight against Nate Diaz. However, a new video has resurfaced that shows Agazarm controlling Paul quite easily in an unofficial mixed martial arts bout.

Tom Taylor - December 2, 2020

Former Bellator and ONE Championship welterweight king Ben Askren has responded to a recent callout from YouTuber turned boxer, Jake Paul. Paul is the talk of the combat sports world this weekend, after improving to 2-0 as a pro boxer with a violent one-punch knockout of former NBA player Nate Robinson last weekend.

Tom Taylor - November 26, 2020

Former Bellator and ONE welterweight champ Ben Askren has responded to a challenge from YouTube star turned boxer, Jake Paul. Paul is slated to box former NBA player Nate Robinson on the main card of this Saturday’s Mike Tyson vs. Roy Jones Jr. card. Ahead of the fight, the YouTuber set his sights on future fights with Askren, Jorge Masvidal, and Conor McGregor.

Tom Taylor - November 24, 2020

Former Bellator and ONE Championship welterweight titleholder Ben Askren isn’t ruling out a return to mixed martial arts. Askren retired from competition last year, after a knockout loss to Jorge Masvidal and a submission loss to Demian Maia in the UFC. Once his retirement was confirmed, he underwent a complete hip replacement.

Tom Taylor - October 29, 2020

Georges St-Pierre, Ben Askren, and Renzo Gracie are set to appear on ONE Championship’s upcoming reboot of The Apprentice.  ONE Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong announced St-Pierre, Askren and Gracie’s involvement in the project on social media on Wednesday, adding that the trio will join a host of ONE Championship stars such as Angela Lee and Demetrious Johnson.

Adam Martin - September 22, 2020

Former UFC welterweight Ben Askren took a shot at Dominick Reyes and Jan Blachowicz ahead of their title fight this weekend at UFC 253. Since retiring from mixed martial arts following back-to-back stoppage losses to Jorge Masvidal and Demian Maia, Askren has become an outspoken voice on social media. Askren is particularly popular on Twitter where he has a big following due to his hilarious comments and often contoversial hot takes on all sorts of different subjects.

Tom Taylor - September 16, 2020

Former ONE Championship and Bellator welterweight champ Ben Askren isn’t sold on red-hot UFC welterweight prospect Khamzat Chimaev just yet. Chimaev was the breakout star of the UFC’s four-even stint on “Fight Island” in Abu Dhabi in July. The Chechen-Swede won two fights in a 10-day span, submitting John Phillips at middleweight and Rhys McKee by TKO at welterweight—both in the first round.

Tom Taylor - September 16, 2020

Ben Askren has some advice for UFC welterweight contender Leon Edwards, who is struggling to get a big opportunity despite an eight-fight win-streak. Edwards, who currently holds the No. 3 spot in the UFC welterweight rankings, has gone over a year without a fight, and has grown increasingly bellicose during that time.

Christopher Taylor - September 10, 2020

Like many of us, Ben Askren was very disappointed to hear that a targeted lightweight fight between Dustin Poirier and Tony Ferguson has fallen apart. Earlier this month it was reported that the Ultimate Fighting Championship was looking to put on a fight between the former interim lightweight title holders in Poirier and Ferguson at UFC 254.

Christopher Taylor - September 9, 2020

UFC welterweight contender Gilbert Burns was not happy about Ben Askren suggesting that Mixed Martial Arts is kind of boring right now. Earlier this afternoon, “Funky” took to Twitter where he shared his thoughts on the current state of MMA.

Tom Taylor - September 7, 2020

Former ONE Championship and Bellator welterweight titleholder Ben Askren has chimed in on the news that Nick Diaz is plotting a comeback. Diaz, the former Strikeforce welterweight champ and a former UFC welterweight title challenger, has reportedly undergone a test weight cut and is plotting a comeback in 2021. ESPN’s Ariel Helwani shared this exciting news on Sunday evening.

Natasha Hooper - September 2, 2020

As soon as he exited the operating theatre, Ben Askren took aim at Sean O’Malley, encouraging him to “toughen up a little bit.” Askren has long been suffering from a hip injury which ultimately impacted his fights against Demian Maia, Jorge Masvidal, and his decision to retire in November 2019. His affliction is the collateral damage of his accomplished wrestling and MMA career which saw him climb through the ranks of Bellator and ONE Championship and perform in the Olympics.

Tom Taylor - August 19, 2020

Tim Welch, one of the coaches behind Sean O’Malley, has responded to some recent comments from former Bellator and ONE Champ Ben Askren. O’Malley last fought in the co-main event of UFC 252 last weekend, succumbing to a volley of punches from Marlon Vera after seemingly injuring his leg. After the fight was stopped, he was stretchered out of the Octagon.

Tom Taylor - August 19, 2020

Former ONE Championship and Bellator welterweight champion has offered a tough assessment of Sean O’Malley’s UFC 252 loss to Marlon Vera. O’Malley met Vera in the co-main event of last Saturday’s UFC 252 card. Heading into the matchup, O’Malley had never been beaten, and was regarded as one of the brightest young prospects in the UFC. In the end, however, he was stopped by a torrent of Vera punches in the first round after seemingly injuring his leg.

Tom Taylor - August 12, 2020

Former ONE Championship and Bellator welterweight titleholder Ben Askren doesn’t have a lot of regrets with respect to his MMA career, but there is one thing he’d do differently. Askren, who retired after going 1-2 in the UFC in 2019, was asked by a fan if there is anything he wishes he could change about his MMA journey. He issued a lengthy and thoughtful response on Twitter.

Tom Taylor - August 5, 2020

Former ONE Championship and Bellator welterweight champion Ben Askren says he “probably would” fight again, but the circumstances would have to be right. Askren retired in 2019, after sustaining back-to-back losses to Jorge Masvidal and Demian Maia—a knockout and a submission respectively. In his retirement announcement, he cited a need for a hip replacement.

Adam Martin - July 17, 2020

Former UFC welterweight star Ben Askren named Khabib Nurmagomedov as the one dream opponent he wanted outside of his normal weight class of 170lbs. Askren retired from MMA last year after compiling a 19-2, 1 NC record from 2009 to 2019. A former champion in Bellator and ONE Championship, Askren joined the UFC in a game-breaking trade for pound-for-pound great Demetrious Johnson in 2018. The journey to the UFC didn’t go as planned for Askren, who suffered back-to-back stoppage losses to Jorge Masvidal and Demian Maia before deciding to hang up his gloves at age 34. He cited the need for a hip replacement as one of the reasons why he decided to retire.