Ben Askren News

Adam Martin - December 23, 2020

Former UFC welterweight Ben Askren says to “bet the house” after opening up as the betting underdog to YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul. Askren confirmed on Tuesday to BJPenn.com that he has accepted a boxing match with Paul that is scheduled to take place on March 28 in Los Angeles. Askren later took to his social media to release a video explaining why he accepted Paul’s callout, admitting he took the fight because he views it as easy money. Even though he’s a wrestler by trade and not a striker, Askren believes that he has the upper hand because he is a professional athlete who has competed at the highest levels of combat sports for nearly 20 years.

Tom Taylor - December 23, 2020

Bellator MMA President Scott Coker believes he knows how a rumored boxing match between Ben Askren and Jake Paul will go down. Askren claims that he’s in talks to fight Paul in March. While he previously reigned as the Bellator and ONE Championship welterweight titleholder and is a decorated wrestler, he’s never been much of a striker, and is widely expected to be at a disadvantage in a boxing match against the YouTube star turned pro boxer, Paul.

Adam Martin - December 22, 2020

Former UFC welterweight Ben Askren posted a video to his social media explaining why he is fighting YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul. On Tuesday, BJPenn.com’s Cole Shelton reported that Askren was deep in talks for a boxing match with Paul that is set for March 28. A few hours later and Askren took to his social media to post a one-minute video confirming he has accepted the fight with Paul. Check out the video below that Askren posted to his Twitter explaining why he said yes.

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.

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.

Cole Shelton - November 25, 2020

Jake Paul will return to the boxing ring against former NBA All-Star, Nate Robinson in the co-main event of the Mike Tyson vs. Roy Jones Jr. undercard. Although Paul is just 1-0 as a pro boxer, where he knocked out another YouTuber, the 23-year-old is extremely confident in his skills. Paul says he has been training with WBC and WBA champions and has been doing well.

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.

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 believes he knows what Tyron Woodley needs to do in order to knock out Colby Covington in the main event of UFC on ESPN 11 this weekend. Woodley will enter his fight with Covington on a two-fight skid, having given up back-to-back decisions to Kamaru Usman and Gilbert Burns. Askren believes that, in order to return to his old habit of knocking his opponents out, Woodley needs to get out of his own head and let his hands fly.

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 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.

Harry Kettle - September 2, 2020

Former UFC welterweight contender Ben Askren isn’t a fan of the UFC 256 title showdown between Kamaru Usman and Gilbert Burns. It’s safe to say that “Funky” is one of the most outspoken figures in recent MMA history, and while his time with the Ultimate Fighting Championship didn’t quite go to plan, he still knows how to rile people up on social media.

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

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.