Tag: Ben Askren

Sean O’Malley responds to criticism from Ben Askren: I thought he was smart

Sean O’Malley thinks Ben Askren’s criticism toward him was unwarranted.

[autotag]Sean O’Malley[/autotag] thinks [autotag]Ben Askren[/autotag]’s criticism toward him was unwarranted.

O’Malley (12-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC), who suffered his first pro loss to Marlon Vera at UFC 252, was stretchered out of the arena after rolling his ankle multiple times in the fight, which visibly hindered his movement. Vera took advantage and stopped O’Malley with a TKO late in Round 1.

Askren ripped O’Malley, claiming it was a sign of weakness for him to get carted out and that he should have just hopped on one leg.

But O’Malley can’t understand why Askren would criticize him for using a stretcher to prevent further damaging his ankle when exiting the arena.

“I thought Ben Askren was smart,” O’Malley said on “The Timbo and Sugar Show” podcast. “I didn’t know he was slow. You have an opportunity, you (expletive) your foot up. I had an opportunity. Your foot’s (expletive) up, and you have to walk here to there. Or they said, ‘Here, we’ll push you on a little thing with wheels so you don’t have to walk on your (expletive) up foot, make it worse.’ I’m like, ‘God, big Ben – I thought you were smarter. I didn’t know you were stupid.’ It’s just stupid. If you ask the smartest person in the world, you smash their foot and you say, ‘Do you want to walk over there or do you want to be carted?,’ they would take the cart.”

O’Malley’s coach Tim Welsh claimed “Suga” tried to say that he didn’t need a stretcher, but it was forced on him.

According to O’Malley, he suffered no serious damage to his ankle. He hasn’t been medically cleared yet, but plans on visiting another doctor for an MRI this week. He recently posted a video of him dancing, saying he’s good and he just “tripped” in the fight.

[vertical-gallery id=544923]

Ben Askren thinks Sean O’Malley ‘needs to grow up’ because he left UFC 252 on a stretcher

According to Ben Askren, Sean O’Malley showed weakness after his loss to “Chito” Vera.

[autotag]Sean O’Malley[/autotag] didn’t protest what some considered a quick stoppage in his loss to Marlon Vera this past weekend at UFC 252. Instead, he laid on the mat writhing in pain.

An apparent left foot injury suffered during the fight led to O’Malley leaving the octagon on a stretcher. And the way [autotag]Ben Askren[/autotag] sees it, that was a show of weakness from the 25-year-old prospect.

“He wanted to just be out of there for whatever reason,” Askren said Monday while stepping in to co-host ESPN’s “DC & Helwani.”

When it was brought up that the reason probably was O’Malley being in a lot of pain, Askren nearly blew a gasket.

“It’s a fist fight! Deal with that sh*t!” Askren yelled. “Deal with it! It’s a fist fight!”

Askren calmed down and continued.

“I’m saying he shouldn’t have done that. It’s a fist fight,” he said. “Yes, (O’Malley) was in pain obviously. Listen, if you don’t have the expectation that you’re gonna be in pain when you get into a fist fight, you’ve got some bad expectations.”

[lawrence-related id=545783,545395]

The full extent of O’Malley’s injury remains unknown. According to ESPN, an X-ray on his ankle/lower leg revealed no fractures, but an MRI would still be needed once swelling subsides to reveal any possible ligament or tendon tears, as well as in his knee.

Despite this, Askren still heavily criticized O’Malley for even allowing himself to be taken off on a stretcher. The former Bellator and ONE Championship title holder considers it a sign of weakness.

“If they tried carting me out because of an ankle injury, I would’ve fought someone over that,” Askren said. “You’re not putting my ass on a stretcher because I got an ankle injury. I got one other good leg, and I’m gonna hop all the way to the back. Leave me the eff alone. I think he needs to grow up. …

“It’s part of growing up. In life, you have failures, you have struggles. You’re gonna learn from them. Obviously he hasn’t lost a fight to this point, so he probably hasn’t experienced those really hard things and really, at this point, embarrassment also. He was building himself up and got his ass kicked by ‘Chito’ Vera. He’s probably a little embarrassed by that, as well. Hey, that’s part of it. Get up, rub some dirt on it, hop yourself to the back.”

[vertical-gallery id=352477]

Ben Askren wishes he’d focused more on jiu-jitsu: ‘My potential to choke people out went untapped’

Ben Askren thinks about what could’ve been had he taken Brazilian jiu-jitsu training more seriously.

When [autotag]Ben Askren[/autotag] turned professional as a mixed martial artist in February 2009, he did so on the heels of a remarkable amateur wrestling career.

Askren, who competed for the University of Missouri at 174 pounds, was a two-time NCAA national champion and four-time All-American after posting a career record of 153-8. What set Askren apart from his peers, however, was his dominance.

Of his 153 wins, 91 were by pinfall – good for third on the all-time NCAA Division-I list.

After a disappointing showing at the 2008 Summer Olympics, Askren transitioned to MMA, where he won titles in both Bellator and ONE Championship and remained unbeaten through 19 fights. Still, with those accolades to his credit, there is one thing Askren said he regrets about his career given his pinning prowess in wrestling.

“I never really had a great jiu-jitsu coach until really the end of my career when I found Marc Laimon. I really enjoyed him. But before that, there was really a mix of different jiu-jitsu coaches at (Roufusport), and I think that my potential to choke people out went untapped,” Askren said in response to a fan question on Twitter. “I was the best pinner in modern era of college wrestling, and I think if I would have went to work with, say, the Danaher Death Squad or Marcelo Garcia, I could have really tapped into that at a much higher level. But then at the same time, I really liked being coached by Duke (Roufus), that was going well, and I always thought, ‘Hey, I’m good enough on the ground. I need to work on the striking end of the takedowns.’ I always thought, ‘Hey, I’m going to be done in a couple of years.’ And then it just ended up so happening that I fought until effing 2019.

“If I would have put some more time into jiu-jitsu, I think I could have gotten better choking people. But, hey, that’s how it goes sometimes. That’s what I would have done a little bit differently had I been able to go back and do it again.”

[lawrence-related id=543758,543764]

Askren, 36, retired from MMA late last year. He’d originally retired as ONE’s welterweight champ, undefeated at 18-0, in November 2017, but that was short lived when the UFC and ONE Championship executed a trade that sent Demetrious Johnson to the Asian-based promotion and finally gave Askren the opportunity to compete at the highest level.

That was something Askren always wanted, but he could never convince UFC president Dana White – until the trade was executed in November 2018. Askren went 1-2 in the UFC, beating Robbie Lawler by controversial technical submission in his promotional debut before being finished by Jorge Masvidal and Demian Maia in his next two fights.

When he looks back on his overall career path, Askren said he has no regrets.

“As far as the career path I took, had I been able to foresee the future, I don’t think (I’d change anything),” Askren said. “When I was 3-0, and Bellator offered me that deal, I thought that was a really great deal. I thought it was an outstanding opportunity, which it was. Right? My time in Bellator went really well, and at the end of that, when my negotiation came up, it didn’t work out with Dana and the UFC. To this day, I still don’t know why. So I couldn’t change that.

“I found a great home in ONE Championship. Everything went well there. I retired, I came back, so from that perspective, I wouldn’t change anything.”

[vertical-gallery id=391022]

Ben Askren on Jorge Masvidal’s rise to stardom: ‘I put the spotlight on him’

Ben Askren thinks he’s a big reason why Jorge Masvidal has emerged as one of the most popular fighters on the UFC’s roster.

[autotag]Ben Askren[/autotag] thinks he’s a big reason why [autotag]Jorge Masvidal[/autotag] has emerged as one of the most popular fighters on the UFC’s roster.

Askren, who has the gift of gab, quickly became one of the most talked about fighters on the roster when he made his highly-anticipated UFC debut in March 2019.

He remained unbeaten with a controversial finish of Robbie Lawler at UFC 235, which put him in top contention at 170 pounds. Askren then flew to London to take a front row seat to watch Masvidal fight Darren Till just weeks later, hoping to fight the winner.

After Masvidal (35-13 MMA, 12-6 UFC) knocked Till out, Askren knew what he wanted next and proceeded to poke and provoke Masvidal until the two were booked for a title eliminator at UFC 239.

The build-up was entertaining. The no-nonsense Masvidal took issue with Askren’s trash talk and vowed to make him pay in their fight.

And that’s exactly what he did when he delivered a record-breaking flying knee, knocking Askren out cold in just five seconds. He followed it up with two extra shots, deeming them “super necessary,” which has become one of Masvidal’s catchphrases.

Following the fight, Masvidal’s popularity skyrocketed, and while Askren said he respects him, he thinks he deserves some credit for helping Masvidal’s star shine.

[lawrence-related id=533083,532864,532871]

“I put the spotlight on him,” Askren told ESPN. “His Twitter followers, his Instagram followers, it went five (times higher). I put the spotlight on him. I played the foil to him. I let him shine, unfortunately. I thought I was going to crush him. He says some of these things like the ‘three-piece and a soda’ that maybe he isn’t intentionally funny, but again it’s really authentic and people love that. When he said (expletive) ‘super necessary,’ which I feel like he was kind of a douche for punching me when I was already unconscious – that was just unnecessary, but he says it was ‘super necessary.’

“You know what? It’s pretty funny. I was the dude that got punched, and listen – that was Jorge being real, and that was kind of funny. Even though it was me, and I thought he was a douchebag for punching me when I was unconscious, it was kind of funny. So, yes, there is a certain authenticity to Jorge that people really, really enjoy.”

After sparking Askren, Masvidal capped off his big 2019 with a stoppage win over Nate Diaz at UFC 244 to capture the “BMF” title.

Masvidal has his first UFC title shot against welterweight champion Kamaru Usman on Saturday in the UFC 251 main event at Yas Island in Abu Dhabi.

[vertical-gallery id=466336]

Photo: Ben Askren looks just like this 1940s Indiana wrestler, and it’s freaky

Whoa.

Did [autotag]Ben Askren[/autotag] hop into “Doc” Brown’s DeLorean, travel back to 1942 and wrestle for the University of Indiana before returning to present day to have standout amateur wrestling and professional MMA careers?

If he didn’t, he sure could’ve fooled me!

I was scrolling through Twitter on Tuesday night when this photo tweeted by @BenAskrenGhost (LOL) appeared in my feed, and it made me do a double take:

[protected-iframe id=”9bdf19cca34545910fde9cba24573d7e-58289362-58194562″ info=”https://giphy.com/embed/K0Mmal97YNYkw” width=”477″ height=”480″ frameborder=”0″ class=”giphy-embed”]

via GIPHY

Need a closer look to see what I mean? Here you go:

Tell me you don’t think that looks just like Ben Askren! You can’t. Because it does, and it’s freaky.

Now, before you go thinking this is fake, it actually isn’t. The young man in that photo is former Indiana wrestler Sigmund Golonka, and proof of his existence can be found in the university’s online archives photograph collection.

But I’ll be damned if it isn’t Askren himself who traveled back in time.

[opinary poll=”do-you-see-the-resemblance-between-ben-a-T0ukZi” customer=”mmajunkie”]

The Blue Corner is MMA Junkie’s blog space. We don’t take it overly serious, and neither should you. If you come complaining to us that something you read here is not hard-hitting news, expect to have the previous sentence repeated in ALL CAPS.

Chase Hooper has measured response to UFC 250 loss, then roasts ‘pops’ Ben Askren

Chase Hooper seems to have taken the first loss of his career in stride.

[autotag]Chase Hooper[/autotag] lost his undefeated status on Saturday – but he didn’t lose his sense of humor.

Hours after his UFC 250 unanimous decision loss to Alex Caceres, Hooper (9-1-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) issued a statement on Twitter. He voiced an optimistic outlook, saying he’s focused on improvement.

“Fought a veteran with more UFC fights than I have years of being alive, and I went the distance with him,” Hooper said. “It was a tough fight, and he had a solid game plan and good defense. Now it’s time to suck it up, get back to the gym, work on the stand up move on to the next one.”

Not only did Hooper issue a statement, he posted a response to former UFC welterweight [autotag]Ben Askren[/autotag]. Similarities in appearance between Hooper and Askren have been a running joke on social media and in interviews.

At UFC 250, Hooper absorbed numerous strikes from Caceres and was even knocked down at one point. In response to Askren, Hooper joked he didn’t inherit his chin from his father – a subtle jab at Askren’s UFC 239 KO loss to Jorge Masvidal.

Sorry, Pops… Glad I at least got my mom’s chin tho.

UFC 250 took place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The main card aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and early prelims on UFC Fight Pass/ESPN+.

[vertical-gallery id=524848]

April Fools’ Day 2020: MMA community lightens mood through humor, pranks

April Fools’ Day has become notorious for faux fight announcements, bad fighter pranks, and more.

April Fools’ Day is once again upon us.

If you’re not skeptical of any and all news you read on April 1, you’ll likely fall into a trap. It’s easy to do so.

With the coronavirus situation having most of the world on quarantine, lockdown, or both, the MMA community went a little lighter than past years. However, there were still plenty of “jokes” to go around.

Below, check out some of the MMA community’s best social media posts from April Fools’ Day 2020.

View this post on Instagram

We have a baby! April Fools Day! But no for real we have a baby! @_kydavis started having contractions around midnight, we got to hospital around 4am and Detroit Ryan Davis was born at 9:31am! He is a BIG and healthy boy! 8lbs 10oz. First I want to give props to ANY & ALL mother’s out there! Child Birth is amazing, beautiful, & terrifying all in one! Kylie did amazing and is doing great! Detroit latched on to mommas 🥛 right away.. He has huge hands & feet and favors DK mostly. But has blonde/sandy brown hair! His middle name is for my brother(his uncle) and he was born the same day as Ryan’s first born, Kimora Rhyan Lynn. (Happy Birthday Kimora) We are so blessed and thankful God is good! 👶❤️🙏

A post shared by LC Davis (@lc_davis) on

 

Ben Askren breaks down keys to victory in Khabib vs. Ferguson matchup at UFC 249

Ben Askren breaks down the UFC 249 lightweight title fight between champion Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson.

[autotag]Ben Askren[/autotag] knows a thing or two about being a strong grappler.

One of the most anticipated matchups in UFC history between lightweight champion [autotag]Khabib Nurmagomedov[/autotag] and [autotag]Tony Ferguson[/autotag] is scheduled to take place April 18 in the UFC 249 headliner.

No one has been able to stop Nurmagomedov, who has run through all opposition, mostly by pinning opponents to the mat and punishing them with relative ease.

But in Ferguson, Nurmagomedov faces someone with serious threat off of his back, whether it be his slick jiu-jitsu game, or sharp elbows from bottom.

Speaking to Submission Radio, former Olympic wrestler Askren gave his take on the matchup and why Ferguson might have what it takes to stop Nurmagomedov.

“Khabib’s obviously going to get takedowns, and he’s been so dominant with ground-and-pound,” Askren said. “But at the same time, Tony is so active off his back and he’s good with the elbows and he’s got a lot of tricky stuff. I think it’s going to be totally fascinating. I’m excited to see what happens.

“Tony’s a great fit, because he’s not going to stay put on bottom. Tony can take a lot of damage, which, you know – Khabib will dish it out. Tony doesn’t get tired. And then Tony’s a high-volume striker. He’s not a power puncher, which I don’t think is the right mix to beat Khabib because I think you have to kind of fight him hard, stuff a few takedowns and volume strike him. And I think that’s how you’re going to beat him – and that’s what Tony does. So there’s a possibility.”

[lawrence-related id=500753,500560,500340]

But with uncertainty surrounding the event due to the coronavirus outbreak, Askren urged the UFC to proceed with the fight no matter what, even if it means sacrificing the rest of the card.

“The one thing I said last night was, let’s not get greedy, Dana – let’s make this really simple,” Askren said. “All we need is Tony and Khabib. We don’t need a (expletive) undercard. So in America they’re doing 10 people maximum – you can’t have more than 10 people in a group. So you’ve got Tony, Khabib, three judges. But, you could also have the judges be remote. So you don’t actually have to have them there.

“Your referee, you have Dana, you have Bruce Buffer and you have Joe Rogan, maybe. Maybe we take the judges out and make the judges remote at a remote location and we give (the fighters) each two coaches or something, or one coach. I think there’s a way to do it to keep it under 10 people and broadcast it.”

[vertical-gallery id=497274]

Ben Askren calls Kamaru Usman ‘the worst promoter in the history of MMA’

Ben Askren thinks Kamaru Usman doesn’t understand the fight promotion aspect of the game.

[autotag]Ben Askren[/autotag] thinks [autotag]Kamaru Usman[/autotag] doesn’t get how to play the game.

But he doesn’t mean the game inside the cage, since welterweight champion Usman has yet to lose in the UFC. He’s talking about fight promotion.

Usman is coming off a fifth-round TKO win over rival Colby Covington at UFC 245, where after 24 minutes of battle, Usman was able to finish Covington with less than a minute remaining.

In the lead-up to the fight, there was plenty of trash talk between Usman and the always controversial Covington. Some of it nearly led to a scuffle at the buffet at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas.

Speaking to Submission Radio, Askren said Usman had a chance to play hero in his matchup against Covington, but botched it.

[lawrence-related id=500850,498513,478190]

“I think Usman is like the worst promoter in the history of mixed martial arts,” Askren said. “Because for me, here’s the thing: Colby is literally the most hated promoter, personality, fighter in the UFC, right? And so when Usman is going against him, it’s like OK, you’ve got the bad guy Colby, and then you’ve got Usman – who, all he has to do is he’s got to play the good guy and everyone’s gonna love him and everyone’s gonna cheer for him, right?

“But Usman just could not figure out how to make people like him. Like, he just could not figure it out. It would be so easy to make Colby the bad guy – he’s already the bad guy. He already plays the bad guy. It’s so simple. Just play into that and you’re the good guy – you’re the face, everyone loves you. But Usman couldn’t figure out how to do it.”

Although Askren wasn’t able to make the impact he was hoping for inside the octagon, he certainly did outside and quickly became one of the most popular fighters on the roster with his honest and witty banter.

He was on the cusp of getting a title shot when he faced Jorge Masvidal at UFC 239, but a five-second nightmare knockout loss put a halt to Askren’s aspirations to face Usman.

“Yeah, I blew it, right? I blew it,” Askren said. “If I won the Masvidal fight, I’ve got that. I blew it. You guys trying to rub it in?

“I blew it. I blew it. I apologize to everybody.”

[vertical-gallery id=391022]

Watch Chase Hooper prank Jorge Masvidal: ‘Why did you do that to my dad?’

Chase Hooper: “My father is Ben Askren.” Jorge Masvidal: “I’m sorry, man.”

[autotag]Chase Hooper[/autotag] has us MMA media types shaking in our boots right now. Hopefully, the 20-year-old featherweight phenom is just here to take part and not to take over.

At Thursday’s UFC 246 media day in Las Vegas, Hooper (9-0-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC) served as the UFC Fight Pass correspondent.

While numerous comical clips of Hooper interviewing fellow fighters were posted throughout the day, none was more hilarious than his interaction with [autotag]Jorge Masvidal[/autotag].

“So I’ve got one question for you,” Hooper said, when interviewing Masvidal. “Why did you do that to my dad?”

“Who’s your dad?” Masvidal asked.

“My father is [autotag]Ben Askren[/autotag],” Hooper replied. “Shoutout.”

At this point in the conversation, Masvidal’s expression totally changes. The “BMF” titleholder is caught off guard.

“I’m sorry, man,” Masvidal said. “I didn’t mean to, bro. That’s really your dad?”

Check out the full video of the hilarious interaction below:

Since his UFC debut in December, Hooper and Askren have poked fun at their resemblance. The recently retired welterweight and the recently debuted featherweight have engaged in numerous playful Twitter exchanges.

The Blue Corner is MMA Junkie’s blog space. We don’t take it overly serious, and neither should you. If you come complaining to us that something you read here is not hard-hitting news, expect to have the previous sentence repeated in ALL CAPS.

[jwplayer JFNJrpsd-RbnemIYZ]