Less Than a Year After a Double Lung Transplant, Ben Askren Steps on the Mat One More Time

Ben Askren's heart stopped four times during his hospitalization last summer. Four times bro. Twenty seconds each time where the man was clinically dead before they brought him back. He lost 50 pounds in 45 days. Had no memory of an entire month. His wife kept a journal of everything that happened because he couldn't remember any of it. And when he finally woke up and read through it, his reaction was "it's like a movie. It's ridiculous."

Then he said "I only died four times."

The man said only. Like four times is a reasonable number of times to die.

On July 18, less than one year after receiving a double lung transplant, Ben Askren is stepping onto the wrestling mat at RAF 11 in Milwaukee to face former UFC welterweight champion Belal Muhammad. It's his 42nd birthday and it's in his hometown. It's his final competitive match. And it's on the same card as the Tsarukyan vs Covington main event we already wrote about.

This is the most insane comeback in combat sports history.

Before Everything Went Wrong

You have to understand who Ben Askren was before the hospital to understand why this comeback matters.

Two time NCAA Division I national champion at Missouri. 2008 Olympic wrestler for the United States in Beijing. Bellator welterweight champion. ONE Championship welterweight champion. The only fighter in MMA history who was literally TRADED between promotions. The UFC sent Demetrious Johnson to ONE Championship and got Askren in return. That's never happened before or since. A straight up player trade like the NFL.

His MMA record was 19-2-1 NC. He went unbeaten for 20 straight fights before the UFC. Beat Robbie Lawler in a controversial finish in his debut. Then lost to Jorge Masvidal in 5 seconds. The fastest knockout in UFC history at the time. A flying knee that people are still talking about six years later.

Retired from MMA in 2019. Fought Jake Paul in a boxing match in 2021. Lost by TKO in the first round. That was supposed to be the last time anyone saw Ben Askren compete in anything.

Then he went back to what he loves. Running his wrestling academy in Wisconsin. Coaching kids. Teaching the sport that made him. He was the first signee to RAF Wrestling in May 2025 because he wanted to get back on the mat one more time.

He never got the chance. Because a staph infection on his elbow almost killed him.

What Happened

Late May 2025. Askren got a staph infection on his elbow that turned into severe pneumonia. Pneumonia in a 40 year old former Olympic athlete is not supposed to be a death sentence. But this one almost was.

He was hospitalized. Put on a ventilator in June. His condition deteriorated so badly that doctors put him on the donor list for a lung transplant on June 24. Six days later, on June 30, 2025, Ben Askren received a double lung transplant.

Both lungs replaced.

During the month long stretch from late May through early July, Askren's heart stopped four times. His wife Amy documented everything in a journal because Ben was unconscious for most of it. He lost 50 pounds. Went from being a former elite athlete to a man who weighed less than he did as a high schooler.

"No recollection, zero idea, no idea what happened," Askren said in an Instagram video after waking up. "I just read through my wife's journal. It's like a movie. It's ridiculous. I only died four times, where the ticker stopped for about 20 seconds."

He left the hospital on July 22, 2025. Fifty pounds lighter. With two lungs that weren't his.

"It Was Almost Like I Got to Have My Own Funeral"

Askren said something during his recovery that stuck with me harder than any fighter quote I've written about this year.

"The thing that was most impeccable to me was all the love I felt. It was almost like I got to have my own funeral."

That's a man who came so close to dying that the outpouring of support felt like a memorial service. Except he was alive to experience it. He got to feel what most people never get to feel because most people don't survive the thing that makes everyone show up.

And during all of this, Jake Paul reached out. The man who knocked Askren out in a boxing match in 2021 offered to help pay his medical bills because Dana White and the UFC weren't stepping in and insurance companies were dragging their feet. Say what you want about Jake Paul but that's a real one bro.

Askren also reconciled with Jorge Masvidal. The man who flying kneed him into another dimension in 5 seconds. Seven years of beef and they "broke bread" during Askren's recovery. Nearly dying has a way of making old grudges feel stupid.

From Zero to the Mat

Here's the timeline that makes this comeback genuinely crazy.

July 22, 2025: Left the hospital. Could barely walk.

Late 2025: Started basic physical rehabilitation, walking, breathing exercises. The kind of stuff that healthy people don't even think about.

Early 2026: "It was probably only five or six months ago where I couldn't walk up a flight of stairs without getting winded and struggling." His physical capacity was at zero.

March 2026: Started coaching again at his wrestling academy on a regular basis.

June 2026: Announced his return to competition.

July 18, 2026: Wrestling Belal Muhammad at RAF 11 in Milwaukee.

That's less than twelve months from double lung transplant to competitive wrestling match. With lungs that aren't his. Against a former UFC champion. At 42 years old. On his birthday. In his hometown.

"My wrestling knowledge and my wrestling acumen are still incredibly high," Askren told Uncrowned. "But my physical capacity pretty much went to zero. Now, I train pretty much every single day, in some way, shape, or form, trying to build myself back."

Why Belal

Askren picked Belal Muhammad specifically and he was honest about why.

"I wanted to pick someone who was tough. Belal is really, really tough, but he doesn't have super high-level wrestling credentials. That wasn't his background. That's not what he did permanently. I know I can't compete with some of the high-level wrestlers at this point in my life, but I feel like I can still compete against some really good ones."

Then he added something that tells you everything about who Ben Askren is.

"I didn't want to go to the other side and pick someone who was too easy, because that annoys me. Some of the wrestlers in RAF actually want easy matches, and it's annoying."

The man who died four times, got new lungs, and couldn't walk up stairs six months ago is annoyed by the idea of picking an easy opponent for his comeback. He wants it to be real. He wants the challenge to mean something. He's not doing a celebrity exhibition. He's wrestling a former UFC champion because anything less would be an insult to the sport he's given his life to.

One Last Match

Askren confirmed this is it. One last match.

He lobbied for RAF to come to Milwaukee. They booked July 18. He realized it was his birthday. "Something spoke to me," he said. "I said I need to wrestle on that day."

The card already has Tsarukyan vs Covington in the main event. Askren vs Muhammad is the co-main. UWM Panther Arena. Fox Nation. His hometown. His birthday. His final match. With lungs that weren't in his body twelve months earlier.

I've written about fighters who survived poverty. Fighters who survived violence. Fighters who survived prison. Fighters who survived being told they weren't good enough. But I've never written about a fighter who survived dying four times, losing both his lungs, and losing 50 pounds in a hospital bed, and then decided the right thing to do was wrestle a former UFC champion on his birthday less than a year later.

Ben Askren was an Olympic wrestler. A two time NCAA champion. A Bellator champion. A ONE champion. The only trade in UFC history. The man who got flying kneed in 5 seconds and became a meme. The man who fought Jake Paul and lost. And none of that is what he'll be remembered for.

He'll be remembered for July 18. For walking to the mat with someone else's lungs in his chest and competing one more time because that's all he ever wanted to do.

"Something spoke to me."

Yeah bro. Something spoke to all of us.

Thanks for riding with CageLore. Stay locked in!

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened to Ben Askren?

In late May 2025, Askren was hospitalized with severe pneumonia caused by a staph infection on his elbow. He was placed on a ventilator and his condition worsened until doctors placed him on the donor list for a lung transplant on June 24. He received a double lung transplant on June 30, 2025. His heart stopped four times during the ordeal and he lost 50 pounds in 45 days.

When does Askren wrestle?

Askren faces former UFC welterweight champion Belal Muhammad at RAF 11 on July 18, 2026 at UWM Panther Arena in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The match is the co-main event under the Tsarukyan vs Covington main event. July 18 is also Askren's 42nd birthday.

Is this Askren's final match?

Yes. Askren confirmed on The Ariel Helwani Show that RAF 11 will be his last competitive match. He has not competed since losing to Jake Paul in a boxing match in April 2021.

What is Askren's competitive background?

Askren is a two time NCAA Division I national champion from the University of Missouri, a 2008 U.S. Olympian, former Bellator welterweight champion, and former ONE Championship welterweight champion. His MMA record is 19-2-1 NC. He is the only fighter in history to be traded between UFC and another promotion.

Did Jake Paul help Askren during his illness?

Yes. Paul, who knocked out Askren in a 2021 boxing match, offered to help pay Askren's medical bills after reports that the UFC and insurance companies were not providing sufficient support during his hospitalization.

Why did Askren pick Belal Muhammad?

Askren said he wanted someone "tough" but acknowledged he cannot compete with elite-level wrestlers at this point. He specifically did not want an easy opponent, saying it "annoys" him when wrestlers in RAF pick easy matches.