Connect with us

MMA

Ben Askren’s final match comes one year after double lung transplant

Published

3 months ago

on

Ben Askren’s final match comes one year after double lung transplant

Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran Ben Askren
will have a fairytale ending to his wrestling career irrespective
of the outcome of his next match.

Askren is scheduled to face Belal
Muhammad in the co-main event at RAF 11 in front of his home
fans in Milwaukee. Most thought Askren would never compete again
when he was battling a life-threatening case of pneumonia last
year. The Olympic gold medalist looked nothing like himself after
undergoing a double lung transplant exactly a year ago. However,
Askren recovered well and gradually returned to the wrestling mats
at his training academy.

UFC veteran Ben Askren returns to wrestling after surviving a
major medical scare

Currently a commentator and ambassador at RAF, Askren had no plans
to compete while urging the promotion to come to his hometown.
However, he couldn't resist the idea when he learned that RAF would
come to Milwaukee on his birthday.

Askren has confirmed that he will hang up his wrestling shoes for
good after his match against Muhammad this weekend.

“I don't want to do any more matches. This is it for me,†Askren
told MMA Fighting. “I never really even had the idea. I did
encourage RAF to come to Milwaukee because we do have a strong
wrestling base here… I knew we would sell a bunch of tickets. So, I
said, ‘Hey guys, Milwaukee's great in the summer; come to
Milwaukee.' We'll sell a bunch of tickets; we'll probably be able
to attract the Chicago crowd too, because they had a great show
there last November or whenever it was. And when they told me it
was going to be on my birthday, something just said, ‘Ben, get out
there and wrestle. It's a year after your transplant. It's your
birthday; it's your hometown. Go do it.'â€

Related Topics:
Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

MMA

Carlos Prates blasts ‘coward’ Islam Makhachev for UFC 336 withdrawal, vows to retire him

Published

8 hours ago

on

October 25, 2026

By

Carlos Prates blasts ‘coward’ Islam Makhachev for UFC 336 withdrawal, vows to retire him

Carlos Prates put Islam Makhachev on blast after the UFC announced his fight with Michael Morales for the interim belt on Jan. 30.

“The Nightmare†was in talks with the promotion to book a UFC 336 clash with the welterweight champion in Toronto, Canada, but will now face Morales after the Russian informed the UFC he wouldn't be ready to fight on that date.

Prates took to social media after UFC's official announcement on Saturday to criticize the champion.

“Islam Makhachev, I've been working toward my dream of becoming a champion for 17 years, and now you've postponed that,†Prates wrote in Portuguese. “I'm the No. 1. I knocked out two former champions, while Morales has only beaten Sean Brady.

“You told the UFC you wouldn't be ready to fight in three months. Brother, you don't drink, you don't smoke, you don't party, and you can't get ready for a fight in three months? Let me show you how it's done. On January 30, I'm going to knock out Michael Morales, and then I'll be back to retire you, you coward!â€

Prates is on a three-fight winning streak in the UFC, all by knockout, and has finished his opponents in all seven octagon victories. Morales, on the other hand, is unbeaten as a professional with 19 straight victories, seven of those under the UFC banner.

Makhachev took a shot at Prates by pointing out the fact he has recently beat Ian Machado Garry, the only man to defeat the Brazilian in the UFC.

“I just beat the guy who chased you around the octagon for five rounds,†Makhachev wrote. “Shut up and go train. You're not on my level. See you soon. #maybeâ€

“As soon as we find out who the real contender is, we'll be right back,†he added in separate tweets. “We have to now who is better who deserve.â€

UFC 336 will take place at the Scotiabank Arena and feature Joshua Van's flyweight title defense against Manel Kape as the headliner.

Continue Reading

MMA

Petr Yan says hes figured out Merab Dvalishvili before UFC 333

Published

8 hours ago

on

October 25, 2026

By

Petr Yan says he's 'figured out' Merab Dvalishvili before UFC 333
Petr
Yan believes he has figured out Merab
Dvalishvili ahead of their trilogy bout.

Yan is scheduled to defend his
Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight title against
Dvalishvili at
UFC 333 on Oct. 24 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. Their series
is tied 1-1, but Yan expects to replicate his commanding
performance in their rematch.

Petr Yan expects another dominant showing against Merab
Dvalishvili in UFC 333 title trilogy

Dvalishvili overwhelmed Yan with his wrestling to win their first
meeting by unanimous decision in 2023. Yan reversed the result in
their December 2025 title rematch, repeatedly defending takedowns
and landing effective strikes to reclaim the championship by
unanimous decision.

“No Mercy†expects another strong showing in their rubber
match.

“We definitely have enough information downloaded from the time we
spent together in the Octagon,†Yan said in a pre-fight interview.
“But the second victory, obviously, was very dominant. I've figured
him out and I'm gonna do whatever I can to this time bring the same
type of victory and even open new layers which we haven't seen
yet.â€

Continue Reading

MMA

Alexander Volkanovski explains why he’s a ‘nightmare matchup’ for Movsar Evloev

Published

20 hours ago

on

October 24, 2026

By

Alexander Volkanovski explains why he’s a ‘nightmare matchup’ for Movsar Evloev
Alexander
Volkanovski is confident he'll become the first fighter to
defeat Movsar
Evloev.

Volkanovski (28-4) will defend his
Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight title against
Evloev (20-0) at
UFC 333 on Oct. 24 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. The champion
believes he presents a “nightmare†stylistic matchup for the
unbeaten Russian.

Alexander Volkanovski explains why Movsar Evloev’s grappling
may fail him in UFC 333 title fight

Ahead of their title clash, Volkanovski explained that Evloev
relies on his wrestling to escape difficult situations. The
Australian champion believes his own grappling skills will deny the
challenger that fallback option.

“I think it just doesn't end well for him,†Volkanovski said in a
pre-fight interview. “I don't mean it in any bad way. I just think
I'm the guy to take that zero from him. He's got incredible skill.
He is very effective with what he does… Every time he's had
problems, he could rely on that wrestling and grappling to get him
out of trouble. And you’ve got to respect that skill. But that
doesn't work with me. That's not a get out of jail free card with
me. When you're panicking, when you're freaking out, you don't get
to just grab hold of me and hang on to a leg or anything like that…
I just think that I'm a bit of a nightmare matchup for him.â€

Volkanovski has demonstrated his defensive wrestling in previous
appearances, including his competitive first bout against Islam
Makhachev, who tops the UFC's men's pound-for-pound rankings.
He has never been submitted in 32 professional fights.

Continue Reading
Advertisement

OUR NEWSLETTER

Subscribe Us To Receive Our Latest News Directly In Your Inbox!

We don’t spam! Read our privacy policy for more info.

Trending