Ben Askren

Benjamin Michael Askren (born July 18, 1984) is an American former professional mixed martial artist, Olympic wrestler and boxer. He formerly competed in the Welterweight divisions of Bellator Fighting Championships and ONE FC, where he was the longest reigning Bellator Welterweight Champion and longest reigning ONE Welterweight World Champion. He also competed in the welterweight division of the UFC, where he peaked as the #5 ranked welterweight. An accomplished grappler, he was a 2008 US Olympic Team Member and National champion in freestyle wrestling. He also was the 2005 Pan American champion as a freestyle wrestler. In college, Askren was a two-time NCAA Division I national champion (four-time finalist), and three-time Big 12 Conference champion (four-time finalist) for the Missouri Tigers, and was the second wrestler to secure multiple Dan Hodge Trophies (the wrestling equivalent of the Heisman Trophy) in folkstyle wrestling. He was also a world champion in submission wrestling. Askren currently works for Real American Freestyle (RAF) as an ambassador, commentator, and matchmaker. He returned to active competition at RAF 11 against Belal Muhammad on July 18, 2026.