Former UFC Star Ben Askren Released from Hospital After Lung Transplant

Former UFC fighter Ben Askren said he was released from the hospital on Tuesday after receiving a double lung transplant back in June.

Askren was diagnosed with severe pneumonia after suffering a staph infection and was hospitalized as he recovered from the ailment.

"That was a long journey," Askren said of his battle with pneumonia. "And it's not over because I still can't really walk. Teaching myself to do that, among many other things. ... I don't remember 35 days of this journey. Surgery was 24, 25 days ago—it was hard. The support you guys gave me—whether it was setting a GoFundMe; whether it was helping my wife and kids get through it; I had friends come visit from all over the country to hang out for a couple of days—it meant so much."

Askren, 41, fought three times in the UFC, going 1-2. His loss to Jorge Masvidal at UFC 239 was one of the more memorable moments in the history of the sport, as Masvidal struck him with a flying knee just five seconds into the fight and knocked him out, the fastest knockout in UFC history.

He also spent a significant amount of his career fighting in Bellator and ONE FC, winning the welterweight title in both promotions, and was 19-2 (1) in his MMA career.

He retired from the sport in 2019, citing hip issues. At the time he said he was retiring from "everything," though he did return to fighting briefly in 2021, famously taking on YouTuber Jake Paul in a 2021 exhibition boxing match.

He was also a two-time national champion in college wrestling for Missouri and competed in the 2008 Summer Olympics in freestyle wrestling, where he was eliminated in the quarterfinals.