‘He Revolutionized the Sport’ – Ben Askren Opens Up About His Hero Muhammad Ali

Published 04/01/2021, 12:59 PM EDT

Ben Askren is all set to face off Jake Paul on April 17 in a boxing match. Many considered the former UFC star one of the most tactically sound fighters of the era. Even though Askren was a proper professional fighter with a great MMA record, he is infamous for being knocked out in just 5 seconds by Jorge Masvidal.

Two years after the incident took place, Askren no longer competes in the UFC, but he is going into one of the most popularized fights of his career.

Askren was a wrestler before he stepped into the world of MMA. Now, he is all set to jump into a boxing ring. During an interview, Askren talked about who his favorite boxers are and whose style he loves most.

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Ben Askren talks Muhammad Ali

Boxing and MMA are two different sports and it is tough for one fighter to compete in one all his life and then switch to another.

Askren is doing exactly that by jumping into boxing. And while he has far more experience in combat sports than his upcoming opponent, Jake Paul, that is all MMA and wrestling experience. In boxing, Jake might just have an advantage over him.

Muhammad Ali was one of the most influential figures in boxing and therefore while growing up many people looked up to him, and Ben Askren is one of them.

When asked about whether he was watching any boxers to learn some things from them, Askren talked about how he loved Muhammad Ali and how he was one of his hero’s growing up.

“Then one of my hero’s growing up was Ali just for a lot of reasons, and you know not, there’s not a ton of footage of him that exists, but he’s obviously you know, he revolutionized the sport at that point in time for sure.”

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Ben Askren Calls 2021 a Good Year to Beat The Whole Paul Family

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Askren’s fight with Jake Paul has been the talk of the town. The animosity between the two fighters was clear when they came together for the official press conference.

Whether Askren wins the fight against Paul is another question, but Funky’s fans will be happy to see their favorite fighter back in a ring.

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Written by:

Paras Pande is a UFC author at EssentiallySports who is pursuing his graduation in Journalism and Mass Communication. An ardent follower of the UFC, he has been covering the sport for 2 years now. Before joining the team at EssentiallySports, Paras gained expertise as an MMA writer whilst working with Sportskeeda.

‘He Revolutionized the Sport’ – Ben Askren Opens Up About His Hero Muhammad Ali

Ben Askren talks Muhammad Ali

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