Ben Askren went through a very serious health scare in 2025, but as of early 2026 he is alive, recovering, and slowly getting back to parts of his old life.

Ben Askren – What Happened?

From MMA star to health crisis

  • Ben Askren is a former Bellator and ONE Championship titleholder and ex‑UFC welterweight who originally retired from MMA in 2019 after ongoing hip problems and needing a hip replacement.
  • After retirement, he focused on family, podcasting, and coaching wrestling, staying active as a media voice in combat sports.

The 2025 medical emergency

In 2025, things changed dramatically for Askren:

  • He developed a severe staph infection that led to life‑threatening pneumonia , landing him in the hospital for a long stretch.
  • Reports and family updates described him as “definitely still fighting” and clarified false rumors that he had died; he was in very serious condition but still alive.
  • His condition became so critical that he required a double lung transplant and spent around 59 days in the hospital during this ordeal.

Askren later revealed that from late May to early July he remembers nothing and learned what happened by reading his wife’s journal, describing it as being “like a movie.” He said his heart stopped multiple times, saying he “only died four times” for about 20 seconds each, underlining just how close he came to not surviving.

Recovery and life now (early 2026)

Even though he nearly died, Askren has been making a slow but very real comeback:

  • By mid‑ to late‑2025, he had undergone a successful double lung transplant and started rehab, with his wife sharing updates and fundraising to help with massive medical bills.
  • Months after the surgery, he was already doing light wrestling practice again and even appeared at wrestling events, showing he could move and participate, though still limited.
  • In late 2025 and going into 2026, he talked about being exhausted easily—saying he gets winded just going up stairs—but also emphasized how grateful he is to be alive and how much progress he’s made compared to the worst moments.

In an interview about heading into 2026, he described the year as “life‑changing,” explaining that 2026 will “look different” because of the lung transplant and long recovery, but that he’s heading in a positive direction. He also shared an uplifting message to fans that they can “do amazing things” and overcome huge challenges, using his own recovery as an example.

How forums and fans are talking about it

On fan forums and wrestling communities, people have been asking exactly what you are: “What’s going on with Ben Askren?”

Typical themes in those discussions:

  • Confusion over early phrasing like “unable to respond,” which some initially read as “unresponsive,” causing extra worry.
  • Clarifications from fans and readers that he was in the hospital and couldn’t reply to messages or rumors, not that he was brain‑unresponsive.
  • A lot of support, with people saying they’re keeping him in their thoughts and hoping updates keep trending in the right direction.

TL;DR (Quick Scoop)

  • Ben Askren retired from MMA years ago because of a bad hip and later got a hip replacement.
  • In 2025, he suffered a severe staph infection and pneumonia, nearly died multiple times, and needed a double lung transplant after a roughly two‑month hospital battle.
  • As of late 2025 and early 2026, he’s alive, in recovery, doing some light wrestling, tiring easily but moving in a positive direction and sharing optimistic, motivational messages with fans.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.