Ben Askren News

Chris Taylor - July 6, 2019

A key welterweight bout between perennial divison contenders Ben Askren and Jorge Masvidal took place on tonight’s UFC 239 main card from Las Vegas. ‘Funky’ was last seen in action at March’s UFC 235 event, where he scored a controversial submission victory over former division kingpin Robbie Lawler.

Chris Taylor - July 6, 2019

Undefeated welterweight Ben Askren received some practice, well sort of, from a fight fan prior to tonight’s UFC 239 fight with Jorge Masvidal. The former Bellator and ONE champion, Askren (19-0 MMA), was confronted by what appears to be a very intoxicated fight fan who had some choice words and interesting moves for ‘Funky’.

Chris Taylor - July 6, 2019

Undefeated welterweight Ben Askren decided to have one last bit of fun before his fight with Jorge Masvidal at tonight’s UFC 239 event. ’Funky’ took to Twitter late yesterday evening, where he shared the following ‘family video’ for fight fans.

Tom Taylor - July 5, 2019

Jorge Masvidal and Ben Askren, who are set to meet on the UFC 239 main card this Saturday, are not particularly big fans of one another. The pair have exchanged plenty of pre-fight trash talk in interviews and on social media, and that intensity has continued now that they’ve both landed in Las Vegas. In fact, the pair had a tense backstage encounter this week.

Mike Pendleton - July 4, 2019

Jorge Masvidal has not been shy about his dislike for his upcoming UFC 239 opponent, Ben Askren and now he’s added fuel to that fire. During his media day interviews, Masvidal told reporters on multiple occasions that Askren froze up during a recent encounter between the two. Since entering the UFC, Askren has gotten under the skin of many welterweight fighters with comments he’s made about them and his lack of concern in their response. There have been many circumstances that has led to the rivalry between both Askren and Jorge Masvidal, but “Gamebred” told reporters on Thursday that once he confronted Askren, there was no fight about to break out.

Tom Taylor - July 4, 2019

At UFC Newark, on August 3, top welterweight Colby Covington will look to reestablish himself as the next man in line for the champion Kamaru Usman with a big win over Robbie Lawler. Ben Askren, one of Covington’s most vocal haters, believes this is a fight that could go either way. Check out what he had to say about the matchup below (via Heidi Fang)

Natasha Hooper - July 4, 2019

The drama continues to unfold between Jorge Masvidal and Ben Askren. Masvidal recently sat down with ESPN’s Brett Okamoto to clarify some recent comments he made. Last week, Askren called out Masvidal for saying he wanted to end his bloodline. During a State of Combat podcast, Askren’ called the alleged comments “sick” and “disturbing.”

Adam Martin - July 3, 2019

Although most consider Colby Covington to be the No. 1 contender in the UFC welterweight division, it’s possible he gets passed over for the next title shot. Everyone thought Covington would be next in line to fight UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman, but Covington was recently booked to fight Robbie Lawler in the main event of UFC Newark. Covington hasn’t fought since last June and with Usman out until November, Covington needed to take a fight to stay busy and make some money.

Natasha Hooper - July 2, 2019

Number 4 ranked UFC welterweight fighter, Jorge Masvidal (33-13) is returning to the Octagon against Ben Askren (19-0) at UFC 239. Due to his undefeated record and elite wrestling ability, Askren is the bookmaker favourite for the upcoming bout. However, Darren Till believes Masvidal shouldn’t be underestimated. “I think him and Askren … I don’t wanna underestimate Masvidal, I wanna stay on the fence with this fight… Masvidal could just pull something off the back or defend the takedowns,” Till told Fighters Only (transcript via MMA Mania). “Ben’s doing okay and he’s got a lot of hype around him. The thing about Ben is he’s a good fighter, he’s a very smart guy, he just loves the sound of his own voice. Just shut up, mate, give it a rest.”

Tom Taylor - July 2, 2019

Ben Askren is not impressed by Nate Diaz. Speaking to MMA Fighting recently, Askren shared his thoughts on the UFC 241 fight between Diaz and Anthony Pettis, and was not particularly kind in his assessment of the former.

Cole Shelton - July 2, 2019

UFC 239 is set to go down from Las Vegas, Nevada on Saturday. The card is headlined by two title fights, and also on the card is an intriguing welterweight fight between Ben Askren and Jorge Masvidal, where the winner could very well get the next title shot. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the fight. Although Askren is a -250 favorite, while Masvidal being the +195 underdog, the majority of the pros are leaning towards Masvidal giving Askren his first professional loss.

Tom Taylor - July 2, 2019

This Saturday, on the main card of UFC 239, Ben Askren will collide with Jorge Masvidal in a pivotal welterweight contender bout. Askren originally expected to fight Darren Till in his next bout, but then Masvidal knocked Till out, jumping the line in the process. “Going in to the fight with Masvidal, I thought [Darren] Till was going to win,” Ben Askren said when speaking to MMA Fighting. “Masvidal was already making excuses so I didn’t really think it was a good possibility of me fighting Masvidal but then when he won, they started looking around at opponents for me and “Wonderboy” [Stephen Thompson] lost [to Anthony Pettis] and Masvidal was the one that made the most sense.

Christopher Taylor - June 30, 2019

On Saturday afternoon, current UFC heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier (22-1 MMA) teased that he would be making a major announcement. About three hours later ‘DC’ followed through on his promise by breaking the following news.

Cole Shelton - June 26, 2019

When Kamaru Usman beat Tyron Woodley at UFC 235 to become the welterweight champion, all signs pointed to his first title defense being against Colby Covington. Well, that likely won’t happen now. On Monday it was announced that the former interim champion would take on Robbie Lawler at UFC Newark. Much to the despair of Usman.

Fernando Quiles - June 26, 2019

Ben Askren has given his take on Artem Lobov’s victory over Paulie Malignaggi. Lobov vs. Malignaggi served as the main event of BKFC 6 inside the Florida State Fairgrounds Expo Hall in Tampa on June 22. Malignaggi was the slight favorite going into the bout, but he dropped a unanimous decision after five rounds of bare-knuckle boxing action. Many were surprised that Lobov scored the win given Malignaggi’s boxing experience.

Natasha Hooper - June 26, 2019

Ben Askren discusses why he believes Jorge Masvidal was not at two UFC 239 press events and addresses some ‘sick and disturbing’ comments ‘Gamebred’ made about his family bloodline. Askren had no problem firing back at Masvidal, who he will be fighting at UFC 239, especially for the recent comments he made regarding his family.

Adam Martin - June 25, 2019

Leave it to Ben Askren to go big-game hunting. At the UFC 239 pre-fight press conference, Askren was asked who his ideal next three opponents were. The first name he listed was Jorge Masvidal, who he fights at UFC 239 on July 6 in Las Vegas. The second name was Kamaru Usman, the UFC welterweight champion. And the third name was the Canadian legend himself, Georges St-Pierre.

Natasha Hooper - June 25, 2019

Ben Askren doesn’t shy away from a twitter roast. Today is no exception as he mocks Colby Covington for not getting a title shot. Askren, the former Olympic wrestler and Bellator champion prepares for his second UFC appearance against Jorge Masvidal. The winner of the fight will likely get a title shot against current champion, Kamaru Usman.