Ben Askren
Some casual fans may have never heard of Ben Askren, but chances are most ‘hardcore’ fans see him as one of the potential top welterweights in MMA today. The American had a stellar career in Bellator, where he went 9-0 and was the king of that organisation’s welterweight division.
However, Askren’s wrestling centric style was popularly viewed as boring in spite of the fact he began finishing his fights. The negative views of Askren’s fighting style led to the 12-0 fighter being shown the door by Bellator despite his championship status.
While there were said to be negotiations between Askren and the UFC brass, he was not signed and was instead advised to seek a contract with the World Series of Fighting (WSOF). However, Askren trod his own path and signed a deal with Singapore-based One FC, where he debuted with a first round submission win over Bakhtiyar Abbasov in May.
Although One FC has invested highly in Askren, the reality right now is that the UFC has the sport’s top welterweights. Askren is still just 29 so there is still potential for him to go toe-to-toe with the Robbie Lawler’s and Johny Hendricks’s of the sport.
