Ben Askren, known for his unorthodox fighting style, dominated MMA matches with exceptional endurance and grappling skills. Notably, even the powerful strikes of legendary fighter Robbie Lawler couldn’t halt him, showcasing Askren’s prowess.
However, the undefeated streak came to an end when he faced Jorge Masvidal at UFC 239, resulting in his first loss. Prior to the Masvidal bout, Askren had amassed 19 victories in his name as a former Olympic wrestler. Unfortunately, after encountering Masvidal, Ben Askren’s career journey took a turn with subsequent losses.
Is the Ben Askren vs. Jorge Masvidal rematch happening at UFC 300?
Following his loss to Damian Maia via submission in the third round of a scheduled five-round fight, Ben Askren retired from MMA competition. As fans eagerly anticipate UFC 300, touted to be the greatest event in UFC history, Dana White has yet to announce the main card.
In a recent YouTube video on Daniel Cormier’s channel, Askren expressed his thoughts on a potential return to the UFC, specifically mentioning a desire to face his biggest rival, Masvidal. Askren stated, “Listen, if Dana called me and said, ‘Jorge Masvidal, UFC 300,’ I don’t give a damn—I’m out of retirement—I’ll fight him. I don’t care. I would love to.”
Ben Askren would end his own retirement to welcome Jorge Masvidal back from his 👀 pic.twitter.com/o8eLWIhOnT
— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) January 5, 2024
Ben showed his excitement about taking his revenge at UFC 300. Askren is clear about the fight not happening, just mythical talk, because it is a long process to make it back to the cage.
“But he’ll never say yes to that unless he loses some more money or something. But it would be great. I would love to. It’s one of those things. I don’t want to be begging and groveling for it. It’s unlikely to happen. So it’s like, if someone calls me and says it’s going to happen, OK, I’m there. If they don’t, I’m just going to live my life.” Via MMA-fighting.
Masvidal’s record-setting win over Askren at UFC 239
Jorge Masvidal may have wrapped his BMF belt around Justin Gaethe, but the striking ability of Jorge has never been forgotten, especially the fight again with Ben Askren at UFC 239. There was lots of trash-talking going on prior to their cage meet-up.
However, it took “GameBred” just six seconds to silence all the trash talk when he delivered a flying knee between the ear and jaw of Ben Askren. Following that knockout, the 39-year-old never recovered and faced consistent losses across various fighting disciplines.
First, it was against Damian Maia at UFC Fight Night on October 26, 2019. Subsequently, in boxing ring, Ben experienced another setback on April 17, 2021, against Jake Paul, where he was knocked out in just 1 minute and 59 seconds of the first round.
What do you think Ben Askren will be able to do to make a comeback even if UFC president Dana White gives him another chance to fight in the Octagon?
