Former MMA star, two-time NCAA wrestling champion Ben Askren hospitalized, ‘unable to respond’

Former MMA star and two-time NCAA wrestling champion Ben Askren was hospitalized this weekend with pneumonia, per his wife Amy. The former Missouri Tiger was suddenly ill and needed to be checked in.

Askren reportedly had a staph infection that turned severe and is now dealing with pneumonia. Amy Askren confirmed the latter Saturday.

For now, all she asked for were prayers. Askren is currently “unable to respond.”

“You may have heard that my husband Ben is going through something,” Amy Askren wrote on Facebook. “He developed severe pneumonia which came on very suddenly. He’s currently in the hospital and unable to respond to anything at this time. We welcome all prayers for healing and for peace. We are trying to keep life as normal as possible for our children (and) currently doing our best to support them thoughtfully, so please refrain from discussing it with them for now.”

A two-time NCAA champion, Askren is one of the best collegiate wrestlers of the last 25 years. He was a four-time finalist for Missouri from 2004-07, winning the latter two titles. 

A pioneer of the sport due to his style, Askren was nicknamed “Funky.” He brought his wrestling style to the modern age where he would put himself in unorthodox positions to win scrambles in order to secure takedowns and pins.

At the senior level, Askren won the 2008 Olympic Trials at 74 KG and represented Team USA at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. He went 1-1 at the tournament and did not medal.

After not placing at the 2010 World Team Trials, Askren fully transitioned into MMA. Following three fights on teh regional scene, Askren was signed by Bellator and proceeded to win the welterweight belt and remained undefeated in his time with the promotion. He then signed with ONE FC, going 6-0 with one no-contest and was the welterweight champion.

Although past his prime and initially retired, Askren returned to mixed martial arts in March of 2019 with the UFC and defeated former champion Robbie Lawler by submission in his debut, getting to 19-0 in his career. However, he would lose to Jorge Masvidal in a would-be title eliminator to challenge Kamaru Usman for the belt. Masvidal knocked out Askren in five seconds with a flying knee. He ended his career with a loss to fellow grappler and long-time fighter Demian Maia.

Since his retirement, Askren had surgery on his hip and hadn’t felt that good in a long time. He’s been coaching at his Askren Wrestling Academy in Wisconsin where he’s coached up national champions such as Keegan O’Toole (Missouri) and Mitchell Mesenbrink (Penn State). Recently, Askren signed with Real American Freestyle, a new pro league founded by Hulk Hogan. You can find more information on the league HERE.