Tag: Ben Askren

Ben Askren confused by Colby Covington’s UFC 296 strategy, says he was afraid of Leon Edwards’ striking

Ben Askren found Colby Covington’s game plan vs. Leon Edwards strange.

[autotag]Ben Askren[/autotag] found [autotag]Colby Covington[/autotag]’s game plan vs. [autotag]Leon Edwards[/autotag] strange.

Covington was hesitant and tentative in a unanimous decision loss to welterweight champion Edwards this past Saturday at UFC 296. He found little success at the end when he took Edwards down in Round 5.

Askren expected more from Covington (17-4 MMA, 12-4 UFC), but thinks the danger of Edwards’ (22-3 MMA, 14-2 UFC) striking had something to do with his lackluster performance.

“I don’t know what his strategy was,” Askren told Middle Easy. “I think the best strategy for victory for him was make cardio a factor, get the takedowns, stay on top – which is what he did in the fifth round. But I think Leon kind of said, ‘I’m going to concede this round; I’ve won this fight’ – that type of thing. I don’t know if that was the right move by him, but that’s what he did. It looked like he was kind of fearful of Leon’s striking and just stayed back and never got in the groove.

“Even in those grappling exchanges later on, Leon proved himself to be more than formidable. There’s a few times I think he even got over-aggressive, maybe overconfident, and ended up in a bad position because of it. On Leon’s end, I really wish he would have turned it up at some point. I think we all came away with the fight with the notion that he’s the better fighter, but if he really would have pressed it, it feels like he could have landed a lot more punches and strikes. He was content to win and not dominate.”

After the loss, Covington called out Stephen Thompson, who was submitted by Shavkat Rakhmonov on the same night. Askren sees Rakhmonov as a better option for Covington if he ever wants another shot at gold.

“Maybe Shavkat,” Askren said. “I don’t know if Shavkat would take the fight. The one that makes sense is if you go Leon vs. Belal (Muhammad) and then you go Shavkat vs. Covington. And if Colby were to beat Shavkat, maybe he gets another title shot because that is someone who would make you worthy of that.

“Stephen Thompson is older. He’s kind of on the downhill a little bit if you look at his record. I like him, so it pains me to say that, so maybe Sean Brady or someone to that effect. But I think the one that makes sense is Leon vs. Belal and Shavkat vs. Colby, and the winner gets next.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 296.

Ben Askren: Sean Strickland title win doesn’t top Holly Holm over Ronda Rousey as biggest upset

Ben Askren was impressed with Sean Strickland’s title win, but doesn’t see it as the biggest upset ever.

[autotag]Ben Askren[/autotag] was impressed with [autotag]Sean Strickland[/autotag]’s title win, but doesn’t see it as the biggest upset ever.

Strickland (28-5 MMA, 15-5 UFC) was a big underdog against middleweight champion [autotag]Israel Adesanya[/autotag] (24-3 MMA, 13-3 UFC) this past Saturday at UFC 293, and was ably to defy the odds with a definitive unanimous decision win.

Magic happened in Sydney 100 pay-per-views ago when [autotag]Holly Holm[/autotag] knocked out then undefeated bantamweight champ [autotag]Ronda Rousey[/autotag] at UFC 193. Strickland had a massive moment of his own, but Askren doesn’t think it surpasses Holm’s win.

“I don’t think this one tops Holly Holm over Ronda Rousey as the biggest upset of all time, and I think from a betting standpoint, that pencils also. (That fight was) also in Australia,” Askren said on Funky & The Champ. “I would look foolish, which happens sometimes, because I said, ‘I don’t see how Sean Strickland’s going to win.’

“I thought Sean Strickland was going to do what Sean Strickland did, which is try to walk him down and box him up. I thought there’s no way he’s going to do that for 25 minutes without getting clipped because Izzy’s got a lot of weapons. The fact that he would be able to do it for 25 minutes straight and not get clipped was so impressive.”

The narrative was that Strickland needed to mix his grappling in to have a chance against Adesanya. But Strickland didn’t even shoot once, and even knocked Adesanya down late in Round 1. He outstruck him over the course of 25 minutes.

“It was so impressive because Izzy’s tricky, he’s fast, he’s got a lot of tools – and Strickland shut everything down,” Askren said.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 293.

Ben Askren responds to ‘coward’ Jorge Masvidal’s boxing callout, pitches Dana White on MMA rematch

Ben Askren is willing to run things back with Jorge Masvidal – but not in a boxing ring.

[autotag]Ben Askren[/autotag] is willing to run things back with [autotag]Jorge Masvidal[/autotag] – but not in a boxing ring.

Masvidal famously knocked out Askren with a flying knee in just five seconds at UFC 239 in July 2019, setting the record for the fastest knockout in company history. Now, with both men currently retired, Masvidal said he’s down to fight Askren in the ring.

“I heard Ben Askren said he’d come out of retirement to fight me,” Masvidal told TMZ. “He wanted MMA but for his sake, I’d do boxing so I can’t knee him in the face. It’s illegal, duh. Come on, man (laughs). Hey, Ben, I’ll beat your ass with both hands behind my back. Ben’s so bad at boxing.

“He’s the one that said it. Look, Ben, I’ll only give you the rematch in boxing, motherf*cker. People will tune in because I can’t knee him in the face, right? Maybe Ben can ‘get his way now.’ Hey, Ben, kiss my ass. You coming out of retirement, I’ll send you right back into it, motherf*cker. This guy, bro. They shouldn’t have shown me that comment, you corny motherf*cker.”

The spectacular finish skyrocketed Masvidal’s career into superstardom, and Askren has always wanted to run things back. “Gamebred” finally accepted but prefers they laced up the boxing gloves, something Askren is opposed to.

Askren wants to get his revenge in MMA and even reached out to Dana White to try and make it happen.

“No I’m not gonna box Jorge. If Jorge was really a BMF he will accept a rematch in MMA and not be a coward.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/CvIOdfZOgYA/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA%3D%3D

“I’ve kept in great shape during retirement. I have zero desire to fight anyone except that loser Jorge.”

Askren, a former Bellator and ONE Championship title holder at 170 pounds, is one of the best wrestling specialists in MMA history. Never known for his stand-up striking, he went 1-2 after joining the UFC in 2019.

Askren made his professional boxing debut against Jake Paul in April 2021, when he was knocked out by the YouTuber in just under two minutes.

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Ben Askren doesn’t consider Conor McGregor an elite fighter anymore: ‘He needs to prove that to us again’

Former Bellator and ONE champion Ben Askren isn’t sure about the future for former UFC dual champ and current “TUF 31” coach Conor McGregor.

[autotag]Ben Askren[/autotag] isn’t sure about [autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag]’s fighting future.

McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC) and Michael Chandler (23-8 MMA, 2-3 UFC) are slated to fight after Season 31 of “The Ultimate Fighter” wraps its broadcast run (Tuesdays, ESPN/ESPN+ through Aug. 15).

McGregor hasn’t competed since he broke his leg in a TKO loss to Dustin Poirier in July 2021 and has been gearing toward a return ever since. But Askren hasn’t seen anything from McGregor that shows he’s hungry to compete against the top again.

“When was the last time you’ve seen a training video of Conor McGregor? Every video I see, he’s partying, he’s dancing, he’s drinking,” Askren said on his “Funky & The Champ” show. “I don’t know. Is this guy taking it seriously anymore? And listen, he’s rich. He can do whatever he wants, apparently. But we also don’t have to consider him a really elite fighter. He needs to prove that to us again.

“I am not under the belief that Conor McGregor is ever going to fight regularly. I just saw he came out saying, ‘I’m going to fight three or four times in the next year.’ That ain’t going to happen. Come on, man. He’s fought four times in six years. Why would he fight three or four times in one year? That’s crazy talk – and I’m not even convinced he’s (going to wind up) fighting Michael Chandler.”

Askren’s co-host, Daniel Cormier, told him McGregor has submitted his first sample to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), but Askren isn’t sold on that, either.

“That would be step No. 1,” Askren said. “I don’t think he’s actually submitted a sample. Maybe I’m being a hater here. Maybe I’m being a skeptic, but I want to see him fight someone. He’s 1-3 in his last four. That is over the last six years. He has the one win against Donald Cerrone. He just hasn’t been active at all. We haven’t seen him since July of 2021. That was almost two years ago.”

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McGregor is the sport’s biggest star and already has accomplished plenty, including when he became the UFC’s first simultaneous dual champion. Askren thinks his best days are behind him, but against Chandler, Askren isn’t completely counting him out.

“I think Conor in his delusions of grandeur probably still sees himself at the top of the heap and probably still sees himself getting another belt,” Askren said. “And there’s a chance, because listen, here’s the thing about Michael Chandler – and I love Michael Chandler; he was my college teammate – but every Michael Chandler fight is almost a coin flip.

“There’s a chance he’s going to kill this dude. There’s a chance he’ll just go boom and put him down. But then he’s going to try some crazy sh*t and there’s a chance he might get put down. McGregor hits hard. I don’t know. I want Michael to win, but it could go either way, and if it goes either way, and it’s a huge fight, they might throw him in for a title. Who knows?”

Ben Askren explains why Jon Jones ‘almost hypocritical’ for saying Francis Ngannou ran from fight

Ben Askren has put Jon Jones on blast, saying he had his chance to fight Francis Ngannou when they were both in the UFC.

[autotag]Ben Askren[/autotag] has put [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] on blast, saying he had his chance to fight [autotag]Francis Ngannou[/autotag] when they were both in the UFC.

During Ngannou’s UFC heavyweight championship reign, former light heavyweight champ Jones stepped away from the sport to put on size for his his move up a division. That took three years and once Jones was ready to return, Ngannou was already in the middle of a contract dispute with the UFC, which led to him vacating his belt to explore free agency and ultimately sign with PFL this week.

Jones submitted Ciryl Gane to claim the vacant heavyweight title in March and has questioned how Ngannou can call himself the “baddest man on the planet” if he doesn’t fight him. Thing is, Jones had plenty of time to prove Ngannou wrong before.

That’s what Askren is harping on.

“Why I thought, ‘Wow, this is really weird, almost hypocritical,’ is Jon chose to be inactive for three years,” Askren said on Daniel Cormier’s YouTube channel. “He chose not to fight. I don’t care what Jon does, (but) he chose not to fight for three years. Francis is in the UFC pretty much the entirety of that three years, and we’ve seen other people go up weight classes.

“‘The Stylebender’ (Adesanya) did it and lost to Jan (Blachowicz) and went back to 185. So, we’ve seen other people do it. He had plenty of opportunity to fight Francis Ngannou, so now Francis Ngannou wants to say, ‘I’m the baddest man on the planet.’ I think he should be able to. Can Jon argue he is also? Sure. But Jon can’t say, ‘You can’t do it.’ Because Jon didn’t fight him for three years.”

Askren said he’d pick Jones to beat Ngannou but explains that while Ngannou was knocking guys out en route to a UFC title, Jones was on the sidelines since February 2020.

“I would choose Jon. I think Jon likely is the best guy,” Askren said. “So my point of contention is, Jon was inactive while Francis was in the UFC and the champion. Jon could have said, ‘Let’s fight because I want to prove I am, without a shadow of a doubt, the baddest dude,’ and it didn’t happen. Francis can still leave, they never fought, and if he wants to say it for a little while, he can say it. I’m not mad at him.”

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Ben Askren: ‘I might not like Jorge Masvidal, but I hope he has ‘an enjoyable retirement’

They certainly aren’t friends, but Ben Askren kept it classy with his words on Jorge Masvidal’s decision to retire at UFC 287.

[autotag]Ben Askren[/autotag] kept his words classy about [autotag]Jorge Masvidal[/autotag]’s retirement.

Masvidal (35-17 MMA, 12-10 UFC) hung up his gloves after a fourth-consecutive loss this past Saturday at UFC 287, a unanimous decision to Gilbert Burns in the co-main event at Kaseya Center in Masvidal’s hometown of Miami.

Prior to his losing skid, Masvidal enjoyed an incredible 2019, which included a UFC-record 5-second knockout of Askren. Masvidal was hoping a win over Burns would earn him a title shot, and Askren admits he expected more out of “Gamebred.”

“I thought Masvidal was going to come ready to fight harder,” Askren said on Daniel Cormier’s YouTube channel. “I think he looked a little bit out of shape. … Jorge got really tired as the fight went on and in the third round Gilbert was just tagging him so many times.”

Past feud aside, Askren gave Masvidal, 38, some praise and wished him nothing but the best.

“You know what? As much as I think Masvidal annoys me sometimes, I mean, I’ve always said his post-fight speech about a guy who started with nothing and made a lot of money, and he hopes he can inspire someone else to go chase their dreams,” Askren said. “Like, I might not like Jorge Masvidal, but that’s some good stuff. So you know what? I don’t wish anyone poorly. I hope he has an enjoyable retirement.”

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Askren, 38, also is retired from MMA. Following his first-career loss to Masvidal, Askren was submitted by Demian Maia in October 2019, marking his final MMA fight. He then returned to action for a boxing match against YouTube star Jake Paul in April 2021, but the standout wrestler was knocked out in Round 1.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 287.

Ben Askren says Belal Muhammad most deserving of UFC title shot vs. Leon Edwards

Based off of recent runs, Ben Askren thinks Belal Muhammad should be next in line for welterweight champion Leon Edwards.

Based off recent runs, [autotag]Ben Askren[/autotag] thinks [autotag]Belal Muhammad[/autotag] should be next in line for UFC welterweight champion [autotag]Leon Edwards[/autotag].

Muhammad (22-3 MMA, 13-3 UFC) is unbeaten in his past nine fights, with wins over the likes of ranked fighters Stephen Thompson, Vicente Luque, and formerly unbeaten Sean Brady at UFC 280.

The lone asterisk in that run is a no contest against Edwards (21-3 MMA, 13-2 UFC) in March 2021 – a fight where Muhammad was inadvertently poked in the eye in Round 2 and rendered unable to continue.

“The one I think should get the title shot is Belal,” Askren said on Daniel Cormier’s YouTube channel. “Belal is now – I think he’s 8-0. He’s won eight in a row, maybe, and he has the no contest against Leon, right? They were already supposed to fight. They were in the cage together. They were fighting, and there was an eye poke, so he’s the one that I think should get it.”

It appears the UFC has other plans for Muhammad. In the UFC 286 post-fight news conference, UFC president Dana White mentioned the promotion’s plans of booking Muhammad against undefeated Shavkat Rakhmonov next.

With Edwards closing his trilogy with Kamaru Usman by defeating him in this past Saturday’s headliner at The O2 in London, the champion is seeking revenge against Jorge Masvidal, who first has to get past Gilbert Burns at UFC 287 on April 8.

Askren wouldn’t be opposed to that.

“The rumors I was hearing today were Shavkat (Rakhmonov) and Belal, and then the winner of Jorge (Masvidal] and Gilbert (Burns) vs. Leon,” Askren said. “I don’t really hate that. I’m good with that.”

He continued, “I don’t like Jorge. But that being said, he hasn’t won a fight. If he beats Gilbert Burns, I’m OK with it because Gilbert Burns is the real deal.”

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Ben Askren: Jorge Masvidal kept turning down Gilbert Burns because ‘he doesn’t think he’s gonna win’

Ben Askren believes the UFC forced Jorge Masvidal’s hand when matching him up with Gilbert Burns at UFC 287.

[autotag]Ben Askren[/autotag] thinks the UFC forced [autotag]Jorge Masvidal[/autotag]’s hand when matching him up with [autotag]Gilbert Burns[/autotag].

Burns (20-5 MMA, 13-5 UFC) claims Masvidal (35-16 MMA, 12-9 UFC) turned him down on numerous occasions before the pair was finally booked for the UFC 287 co-main event on April 8.

Askren, who suffered a record-setting knockout loss to Masvidal in 2019, doesn’t see “Gamebred” beating Burns and thinks he was trying to avoid him before getting pressured into accepting the fight.

“No,” Askren answered Daniel Cormier on Masvidal beating Burns. “That’s why he’s been saying no to Burns, because he doesn’t think he’s gonna win either. DC, you know how most of these dudes work. If they think, ‘I can beat that dude up,’ they say yes easy. If they think they can’t then they say no. That’s how they work.”

He continued, “Burns is what Jorge wants to be. Burns is like, ‘I’ll fight anyone,’ and he actually will. … Burns has kind of fought everyone. He seems like the guy that’ll say yes no matter what. He wants to fight Colby (Covington), he fought (Khamzat) Chimaev, he’s fought (Kamaru) Usman. He’s kind of fought all the best guys in the division.”

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Although Masvidal is currently on a three-fight losing skid, Askren thinks he can leapfrog the other contenders with a win over Burns.

“Oh yeah. Over Gilbert Burns? That’s for sure,” Askren said of Masvidal getting a title shot with a win. “I mean, Chimaev, (Belal) Muhammad and Colby are kind of wild cards, because we don’t know what’s gonna happen next with them, but Gilbert Burns is top of this division for sure, and if Masvidal can beat him, then yeah, I think he would be fighting for the title next.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 287.

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After realizing ‘most athletes end up poor,’ Ben Askren wanted to ensure he was financially stable post fighting

Life after fighting was on Ben Askren’s mind well before he retired.

Life after fighting long was on [autotag]Ben Askren[/autotag]’s mind well before he retired.

Askren, a highly decorated collegiate wrestler and 2008 U.S. Olympic team member, ended his mixed martial arts career with the UFC, where he made waves and rose to stardom in just three octagon appearances.

Askren (19-2-1) retired from MMA in 2019 and secured one final big payout competing when he made $500,000 to box Jake Paul in 2021.

“I was an avid reader growing up, and I realized most athletes end up poor,” Askren said in the interview series “Dad Saves America.” “And this is true as a fighter, and obviously we don’t make as much money as an NBA or an NFL player, but you realize – like so in my last MMA fight, I made $300,000, right. But like for me to do that again, I don’t have an easy way to make that much money again.

“Whereas the fighting was like one fight, I show up, boom, check, there you go. But for these fighters, they get to this point where, OK, they say, ‘All right, I’m gonna retire. I’m done with training. My body’s beat up.’ So then they retire and then they realize like, wow, making that much money in the real world’s like really hard, and I didn’t save enough.”

Making that much money leads to a certain type of lifestyle, but Askren said the hard part is maintaining it. That’s why many retired athletes get lured back into competition, and 38-year-old Askren never wanted to end up in that predicament.

“I think that was something that was really on my mind as I fought, is I want to have something I want to do when I’m done, and I want to be financially stable enough where I’m never forced to fight again if I don’t want to,” Askren said. “I think that’s a place where a lot of fighters and athletes end up.”

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Ben Askren says MMA ‘is a sh*tty career’ and explains why

Ben Askren generally does not recommend MMA as a way to make a living.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Ben Askren[/autotag] doesn’t recommend MMA as a career.

Askren, a former ONE Championship and Bellator champion and UFC fighter, told MMA Junkie Radio that he usually warns wrestlers he coaches to stay away from the cage because there’s little money to be made, even when you’re successful in the sport.

“I usually advocate against MMA. It is a sh*tty career,” Askren said. “I say out of the many thousands of people across America that want to do MMA, man, if you make it to the UFC, OK this is what I talk them through when they’re not that skilled: Make it to the UFC, which that’s hard, right? You’re going to have to do a bunch of amateur fights, then a bunch of low-level pro fights. Someone is going to have to see you, you’re going to have to not get injured, all these good things are going to have to happen to you. So you make it to the UFC, and you’re on a baseline contract, and (if) you win all three fights your first year, you’ll probably make $80,000.

“OK, that’s all right. But, hold on, you didn’t pay your management, you didn’t pay your trainer, you didn’t pay your taxes. Sh*t, you’re sitting on $30,000 to $40,000. You’re at the poverty level. And that’s if you win all three fights and everything went really well. MMA is not a great career. It really isn’t.”

Askren, who recently released his memoir Funky: My Defiant Path Through the Wild World of Combat Sports, said there are some exceptions to his rule. He’s only recommended MMA twice.

“The two would be Corey Anderson (and Jordan Newman),” Askren said. “So when I moved to (Roufusport MMA), I didn’t do any wrestling, because there wasn’t anyone who was competitive, and then I was like, ‘Hey, I need to wrestle at least one day a week.’

“So I would go down to (University of Wisconsin-Whitewater), which is like 40 minutes away, and Corey was a national runner-up at heavyweight. I guess he had a little bit of a boxing background, and I said, ‘Hey, you should consider fighting. I think you’d be really good. You seem to have the mentality for it, you love to work hard.’

“And then the other one, he’s one of my managers for AWA. His name is Jordan Newman. He’s currently 4-0 in Bellator and fights on Nov. 18.”

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