UFC: Jorge Masvidal ‘all right’ with Ben Askren now – ‘he’s not on my aggressive meter’ any more
- ‘Gamebred’ seemingly buries the hatchet with Askren after former UFC star retires
- ‘We never met at Whole Foods,’ Masvidal says – ‘I wish he’d keep fighting’
It took just five seconds for Masvidal to knock Askren out with a flying knee in July, ending the former Bellator and One Championship title-holder’s unbeaten record.
Askren has since retired from MMA for a second time, on the back of a third-round submission loss to Demian Maia in October, citing a need for hip surgery.
“Nah, we never met at Whole Foods and stuff. Ben’s all right man, you know,” Masvidal told FanSided’s Mark Carman. “He’s not fighting any more so he’s not on my aggressive meter, I can say.
“And Ben’s a hell of a fighter, man, he did a lot in this sport. He did a lot in his time. I wish he’d keep fighting after his hip surgery and stuff, but whatever, it is what it is.”
Masvidal’s sensational knockout of Askren went viral and made him into a household name in MMA, even before his victory against Nate Diaz at UFC 244.
UFC: Askren talks ‘challenges’ of retiring; delays hip surgery
“It’s tough not to watch at least once a week, the reason being somebody will tag me in it or repost it or do a new meme or a new highlight video to it,” he said.
“Or somebody will say, ‘Look at this again real quick’ and I’ll say ‘I’ve seen it a lot, man’. Fans come up to me and say this is my favourite fight of yours. Luckily it’s only five seconds.
“It was a little bit surreal,” Masvidal added. “It wasn’t until I got to my hotel room and I was hanging out with a couple of friends over there, we were talking about fights when I was 12, 13, fights we were watching. Lord have mercy, all these guys, I beat them, I’ve got the record. I remember so and so having the record when I was a child. Now I got the record.”
