White: If Askren keeps winning, he can get in UFC
“If he keeps winning, he can get a shot over here,” said UFC president Dana White of former Bellator and current ONE FC champion Ben Askren.
When top welterweight and then Bellator champion Ben Askren was released by Bellator, he expressed the desired to go fight in the UFC. However, the UFC declined to sign him, something Askren pointedly felt was due to a publicly contentious relationship with UFC president Dana White.
In all honesty, I think if you put a 15-man tournament together, I think I could be the best fighter in the world right now, said Askren at the time. And now, I’m not going to get a chance to prove that because one bald-headed fat man chooses not to let me in.
White suggested World Series of Fighting with its deep welterweight roster might be a better fit; Askren ended up signing with ONE FC. White commented on rumors that Askren signed with ONE FC as White had recommended WSoF.
“I’m hearing just stupidness – the reason he went to ONE FC is because he heard that I wanted him to go to World Series of Fighting. I don’t give a f— where he goes. He can go fight in f—ing ABC on fu—ng Pluto, for all I care. I wanted him to go to World Series of Fighting? I don’t give s— where the guy goes, personally. But, there’s competition at World Series of Fighting. There was no competition at Bellator. I didn’t even know ONE FC was still in business. And I’m not taking a shot at these guys, I have nothing against them, I didn’t even know they still existed.
“World Series of fighting…. they have competition there. There’s actually competition where the guy, it sounds to me like this guy wants to walk in somewhere, make a s—load of money, and, I don’t know, he’s just not my kind of guy.”
“We bring in the best guys in the world, they compete, they win world titles they do whatever. But at the end of the day, this is still a business. And you want to be in business with guys that want to be in business with you, guys that are happy. I can just tell from the comments that were made that Ben Askren isn’t one of those kind of guys.”
However, Askren took the ONE FC welterweight championship with an RSC via strikes in just 84 seconds this weekend. The former Olympian remains undefeated after 14 fights, the last four by ref stoppage.
At the UFC 177 post fight press conference, White was amenable to Askren coming to the UFC, where he belongs.
“If he keeps winning, he can get a shot over here,” said White as transcribed by Dave Meltzer.
“Ben Askren said a lot of stupid s— when he left (Bellator), but I don’t care about stuff like that. I could care less about stuff like that. We’ll see how the kid fights. Contrary to belief, well, I do hold grudges forever if you’re a real idiot, I’ll hold a grudge until the day you drop dead, but I don’t hold a grudge against fighters.”
“If Tito Ortiz can come back to the UFC, anyone can, because there’s nobody I hated more than Tito and Tito came back.”
Askren reacted predictably.
Ben Askren @Benaskren
Oh thank you master @danawhite can I please have a shot
So what do you think UG? Does the UFC sign Askren? If so when, and who would you have him fight first?
