Ben Askren is finally home with his family after nearly two harrowing months in the hospital. The former ONE Championship and Bellator welterweight champion was discharged 58 days after being admitted with severe complications that ultimately led to a double lung transplant.
Askren’s health crisis began in late May when a case of pneumonia escalated alongside a staph infection. His condition spiraled quickly, resulting in multiple near-death experiences. Around 25 days before his release, doctors performed a life-saving transplant. Since then, he’s been working to regain strength, mobility, and independence—one day at a time.
“It was brutal,” he said in an emotional video update. “But I’m alive. And I’m thankful.” Askren credited the MMA community for lifting him up during the hardest stretch of his life. When insurance declined transplant coverage, friends and fans launched a GoFundMe campaign, and visitors flew in from across the country to be by his side.
News of his condition became public around the time of UFC 316, sparking waves of support from fighters and fans. According to Askren and his wife Amy, the former UFC star was on the brink of death more than once. Amy, seated beside him in the clip, said he “came too close” to not making it home.
Now out of the hospital, Askren faces a long road to recovery—but he’s walking it with the same grit that defined his fighting career. For a man who’s wrestled at the highest level and faced world-class opponents, this might be the toughest fight yet.
