Ben Askren to make miraculous return to wrestling at Real American Freestyle RAF 11 in Milwaukee

In an incredible turnaround, two-time NCAA champion Ben Askren will make his return to wrestling under the Real American Freestyle banner. Askren, an inaugural athlete signed by the organization, will return to the mat at RAF 11 in Milwaukee on July 18th.

Askren, a Missouri legend, underwent a double lung transplant last summer and was legally pronounced dead multiple times, according to his medical updates released on social media last year. A severe staph infection caused him to be hospitalized and it was a miracle that he survived and was able to return to normal function.

Real American Freestyle made it official on Monday, saying Askren will headline RAF 11 vs. former UFC welterweight champion Belal Muhammad. Askren also joined The Ariel Helwani Show to make the announcement.

“It was interesting on which opponent I should pick, because when I signed with RAF, you know, I was competing at a pretty high level,” Askren said. “We have out of Askren Wrestling Academy, the gym that I coach at, we have quite a few guys who have won NCAA titles, won World Titles, and so I got to wrestle them on a really regular basis.

“So, it was like, ‘hey, I want to wrestle someone really good, because I’m competing at a very high level still.’ Now, obviously, this happened, and my wrestling knowledge and my wrestling acumen is still incredibly high, but my physical capacity, like I said, it was probably only five or six months ago where I couldn’t walk up a flight of stairs without getting winded and struggling. So my physical capacity was pretty much zero, and now I said I trained pretty much every single day in some way, shape or form, trying to build myself back. I’m in the wrestling room very, very frequently, so I wanted to pick someone who was tough.”

Real American Freestyle is streamed exclusively on FOX Nation. Fans and viewers can watch HERE.

Ben Askren makes miraculous return to wrestling at RAF 11

Askren, who serves as the rules analyst during Real American Freestyle broadcasts, did go on to say this is a one-off event. But it’s an exciting return nonetheless, regardless of the result, considering the circumstances.

“Belal is really, really tough, but he doesn’t have super high-level wrestling credentials, right?” Askren said. “That wasn’t his background; that’s not what he did permanently. I know I couldn’t compete with some of the high-level wrestlers at this point in my life, but I feel like I could still compete against someone really good.

“And then I didn’t want to go the other side and pick someone who was too easy, because that annoys me. Some of the wrestlers in RAF actually, they want easy matches, and it’s annoying because it’s like you’re really, really good, you don’t get to go beat up an easy guy. Like, what is the point of competition? The point of competition is to see what we’re capable of, and if I know that person is really wimpy, then what’s the point of competing against them?”

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. 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 the 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.