Who Is Ben Askren? 5 Things to Know About the Ex-MMA Fighter

Ben Askren established himself in the mixed martial arts and boxing worlds despite retiring in 2019. Among one of the ex-fighter’s most popular matches was in April 2021 against Jake Paul, who won. And despite the fact that fighters tend to hurl insults at each other before matches, Jake shared his regards to Ben six years later after Ben underwent a double lung transplant following a severe case of pneumonia.

Below, learn all about Ben, his career and his life now.

Ben Askren Was On the U.S. Olympic Freestyle Wrestling Team

Ben won two state championships as a high school student at Arrowhead High School in Wisconsin and continued to compete in wrestling in college at the University of Missouri. During his time there, he won the  National Collegiate Athletic Association championship in 2006 and 2007. He’s now an inductee in the University of Missouri Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame.

After graduating from the University of Missouri in 2007, Ben went on to compete on the U.S. team for freestyle wrestling at the 2008 Summer Olympics. While he didn’t win medals there, Ben still competed in wrestling tournaments here and there; for example, in 2010, he flipped the table by defeating Ivan Fundora — who beat Ben at the Olympics — at the Cerro Pelado International in Cuba.

Ben Askren Then Became A Mixed Martial Artist

Jake never gave up against an opponent. After making his MMA debut in 2009, Ben has gone on to rack up a number of impressive accomplishments and is most well-known for being the Bellator welterweight champion and the ONE Welterweight Champion. He also never lost a fight during his contract with ONE Championship and left the organization with a headline-making 18-0-1 record when he signed on to fight with the UFC in November 2018. The following year, he stepped down from professional MMA fights.

Ben Askren Retired From MMA In 2019

“I’m retiring from the sport of MMA. Frankly, I’m retiring from everything,” Ben announced on Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show, per ESPN, in November 2019. At the time, Ben had been dealing with hip issues.

“I’ve been having hip problems, and I finally had the discussion with my doctor…and I need a [left] hip replacement,” Ben revealed on the show. He added, “So, man, that’s it for me. I’ve been thinking about this for a week and what I was going to say, and I’m filled with gratitude for how great of a career I’ve been able to have, even though obviously in the end it did not turn out to go my way.”

After completing his hip surgery in 2020, Ben is now getting ready to “return to [his] roots” in freestyle wrestling by competing against the legendary Floyd Mayweather after his match with Jake, he announced in Feb. 2021.

Jake Paul Made the First Move & Challenged Ben Askren To Fight in 2021

Jake challenged Ben (along with other professional fighters like Conor McGregor) to fight in November 2020. Ben took the call-out seriously.

“I’m retired…coaching wrestling, doing some podcasts, buying some bitcoin, enjoying life. I don’t really want to fight anybody. So November, this jabroni Jake Paul calls me out [and] puts up a poster with my name, ha ha. It’s kinda funny, whatever, no big deal. Well then, a couple of weeks later, I get a couple of texts. Then a week after that, I get some calls. Then I get an offer. Ok, this guy really wants to fight,” Ben explained in a Twitter video.

“Am I opposed to making some easy money beating up a YouTuber? Of course I’m not,” he continued. “So what do I do? Sure, Jacob, I’ll fight you. No problem. I accept publicly on Twitter, nonetheless. Since then, Jacob’s went silent. Jacob’s kind of a coward. Sorry guys, don’t think the fight’s happening.”

Ben Askren Underwent a Lung Transplant in 2025

In June 2025, Ben’s wife, Amy Askren, revealed he was hospitalized from a severe bout of pneumonia. He then underwent a double lung transplant the following month.

“I only died four times, where the ticker stopped for about 20 seconds,” Ben said in a July 2025 Instagram video following his surgery.

Shout out to Ben Askren. Just proved that he’s one of the toughest fighters of all time

— Jake Paul (@jakepaul) July 10, 2025

Jake saw his former opponent’s video and shared his best wishes via X. He tweeted, “Shout out to Ben Askren. Just proved that he’s one of the toughest fighters of all time.”