Ben Askren, a UFC fighter who boasts multiple accolades, announced his retirement from mixed martial arts on Monday.

“I think it’s quite obvious what I’m going to say. I’m retiring from the sport of MMA and frankly I’m retired from everything,” Askren told ESPN. “Obviously, it was something I was considering.”

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The 35-year-old Iowa native — who has won both Bellator and One Welterweight championships — cited ongoing hip issues as his reason and said he would need a replacement. Askren (19-2, 1 no contest) signed with UFC in March and last fought in October, when Demian Maia defeated him by submission. Askren’s first career loss came against Jorge Masvidal this summer via a record-breaking five-second knockout but beat Robbie Lawler with a controversial choke earlier this year.

Askren, who is nicknamed “Funky,” is also a wrestler who represented the United States at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing and who won three gold medals for the U.S.: at the Pan American Games in Guatemala City in 2005, at the U.S. Championships in Las Vegas in 2008 and at the World Championships in Fort Lauderdale in 2009. The first two honors were for wrestling, while the third was for grappling.

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Dozens of MMA fighters, from Bellator star Dillon Danis to Corey Anderson and Douglas Lima, used social media to wish Askren well following his retirement announcement:

Bellator MMA is breaking out. There’s a combination of rising stars propping the company up. If you missed it, they recently completed their heavyweight world grand prix, with Ryan Bader defeating Fedor Emelianenko. But the real star is 21-year-old Mike Kimbel.

Bellator MMA 2019 Tickets On Sale Now

The blue-chip prospect tied a Bellator record in October when he knocked out Alex Potts in just six seconds. Check out Kimbel in action.

If shots like that entertain you, know Bellator doesn’t stop. On Friday and Saturday, Bellator Mixed Martial Arts will be at the Winstar Casino Global Events Center in Thackerville, Oklahoma on March 22. Tickets for the event start at $65.08 on StubHub.com. Then, the gladiators will head out to the Pechanga Entertainment Center in Temecula, California on March 29. Tickets are hot, starting at $112. Then, to kick off the month, the SAP Center in San Jose, California will host Bellator MMA on April 4. Admission ranges from $63 to $679. All prices are from StubHub.com.

30 SPORTS FIGURES WHO DIED IN 2018 – TRIBUTE SLIDESHOW

For a preview of Bellator, check out the title match of its heavyweight world grand prix on the Bellator MMA website. Bellator 216 weigh-ins recently finished up and the action kicks off at 9:00 p.m. EST on February 16.

The card will be broadcast live through the Bellator mobile app, Bellator.com, and on DAZN. Heavyweight fighters Matt Mitrione and Sergei Kharitonov will headline the night. Here’s the full card below:

Robert Whittaker was determined to fight Kelvin Gastelum at UFC 234. The UFC middleweight champion wasn’t gonna let a severe hernia get in the way. That was the case until doctors in Melbourne, Australia told him he needed emergency surgery.

Whittaker Shares Video After fight Ban

On Sunday, he posted a video to Instagram to break the news. He wrote: “Hey guys ! Still kicking. I’m sorry to all my friends, fans and family for not being able to get in there Sunday. Apparently if you get emergency surgeries you can’t be cleared to fight. Thanks for the overwhelming support from all my fans I am so blessed to know you guys have my back. A big thanks to my team mates @fabricioitte @alexprates07 @standstrongboxingcoachjustin @justinlang_ep @titusday77 and all the others from behind the scenes you guys were there from start to finish worrying and prioritizing my health above all. Lastly to @danawhite and @ufc for the immediate help and support throughout the process of testing and the emergency surgeries. I am blessed I found out when I did and avoided life long consequences. I’ll be back better than ever.”

He continued: “Let me say that I’m sorry to all my friends and family and fans that came out to watch me perform,” Whittaker said in the video. “But unfortunately I couldn’t be there. I tried my best to try and swing it. I was fighting the doctors all the way up until they said, ‘You’ve gotta get surgery or you’re gonna lose part of your bowel.’ Or it could be potentially fatal. I had to look at my health first — I’m sorry, guys.”

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The 28-year-old Australian said he was diagnosed with a collapsed bowel and an internal hernia hours before UFC 234 kicked off. The problem began when he attempted to rehydrate after the weigh-in for the card. Everything he ingested, he threw up.

Later that day, the middleweight champion was able to have surgery and thanked UFC president Dana White and the UFC medical team for giving him what he thought was the best care possible. The 185-pounder, currently ranked No. 12 in the pound-for-pound rankings, plans to make a return to fighting and be better than ever.

Former NFL star Greg Hardy continues his dominance in mixed martial arts.

Greg Hardy Wins UFC Fight In 17 Seconds

Hardy, 30 — who previously played as a defensive end for the Dallas Cowboys and Carolina Panthers — beat Tebaris Gordon in just 17 seconds on the season finale of UFC’s Tuesday Night Contender Series on Tuesday night. This marked 6-foot-4, 278-pound Hardy’s second UFC victory by first-round knockout. The former football player also previously won three amateur MMA bouts.

According to Michael David Smith of NBC Sports’ ProFootballTalk, Hardy said he would open to returning to play in the NFL should either of his previous teams reach out to him.

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“If the Cowboys or the Panthers call, I’m on my way,” Hardy stated after his victory.

Hardy last played in the NFL in 2015, and his transition to mixed martial arts over the last few months has been controversial, partly because of a domestic violence allegation he faced in 2014 while playing with the Panthers that led to a 10-game suspension and 18 months probation. The charges against him were later dropped.

UFC President Dana White told mmafighting.com that he believes Hardy still needs more opportunities to fight against tougher opponents and improve in all aspects of the sport before he can be allowed to compete in the UFC full-time.

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“I told him, I said, ‘I hope you’re working on your wrestling, because I think guys are gonna start coming out and trying to take you down,’” said White. “I don’t see how much longer guys will come out and strike with him. He claims he’s working on his wrestling and his ground game all day, every day, so we’re gonna continue to build this guy, continue to get him fights and see what he does.

“It’s the level of competition. The guy is 1-0 and he just fought a guy who was 3-0.”

A UFC bantamweight championship bout between Cody Garbrandt and reigning winner TJ Dillashaw is now officially finalized, and is scheduled to take place Aug. 4 in Los Angeles at UFC 227.

TJ Dillashaw vs. Cody Garbrandt UFC 227 fight news

This will mark a rematch between two fighters competing in the 135-pound weight class. The event will be held at Staples Center. The exact position of the bout on the pay-per-view card has not yet been decided.

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Two-time bantamweight champion Dillashaw (15-3) held the title from 2013 to 2016, until he lost against Dominick Cruz in a split-decision loss that was decided by a small margin.

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Garbrandt, 26, and Dillashaw, 32, are training partners. The latter knocked out the former at UFC 217 last November. Garbrandt seemed to gain the edge in the early part of that fight, but Dillashaw came back stronger in the second round. The pair of fighters practiced together at Team Alpha Male in Sacramento, but Dillashaw eventually moved to Denver.

Both fighters are around the same size (5-foot-7 and 135 pounds), so the fight won’t be uneven in that sense. Dillashaw was also a Division I wrestler in the NCAA, having competed with the Cal State Fullerton Titans.

Meanwhile, Garbrandt (11-1) boasts six fight victories in the UFC, four of them knockout wins.

Mixed martial arts fighter, actor and stuntman Alain Moussi has quite a rigorous routine to prepare for a match, no matter what style it is.

MMA Star Alain Moussi On How He Trains For A Match by uSports
The 6-foot, 200-pound Lebanese-Canadian fighter — who most recently starred in the MMA film reboot Kickboxer: Vengeance (2016) for a role that Jean-Claude Van Damme originally played — sat down with uSports for an exclusive interview to discuss his typical training routine for a jiu-jitsu bout, among other things.

“I do strength and conditioning, I work a lot of functional fitness, the same types of exercises you would do in cross-fit,” said the Gabonese-born Moussi, 36. “Then, depending on what you’re trying to work (build more power in your strikes, build grip strength, etc.) I do a lot of exercises that require gripping and lifting/keeping a grip. It’s a lot of push-pull to develop more power, more explosiveness in my striking.”

Michael Jai White On How He Train His Body by uSports

Michael Jai White had to do some serious physical training for his part in the 2016 mixed martial arts film Never Back Down: No Surrender, which he also directed. The 49-year-old explained what steps he took to maintain his body in proper shape in an exclusive interview with uSports.

Attention, all mixed martial arts fans! Tickets for Fight Time Pro MMA at War Memorial Auditorium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, are now on sale!

Tickets: Fight Time Pro MMA Florida Aug. 4

The event will be held on Friday, Aug. 4 and begin at 8 p.m. EST. General Admission tickets are available for $43 on Ticketmaster, while all other (Standard) tickets start at $53.

VIP Tour and Experience buyers must arrive at the Auditorium at 5:30 pm. These lucky viewers will get to witness exactly what happens just hours before the Fight Time Promotions fighters get in the cage. There are also early entry (5:30 pm) guided tours of the fighters’ locker rooms. No tours are guaranteed after 5:40 pm EST.

To order tickets by phone, please call  1-800-745-3000.

BOSTON, MA – AUGUST 17: Chael Sonnen reacts after winning the fight with a tap out by guillotine choke against Mauricio Rua in their light heavyweight bout at TD Garden on August 17, 2013 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)

Bellator’s first-ever mixed martial arts event will be held at New York’s Madison Square Garden this summer, and tickets are on sale now!

> TICKETS: Bellator NYCA MMA tickets (Sonnen vs. Silva, June 24)

The event, Bellator NYC, will take place Saturday June 24 at 5:30 pm EST. The main card will see Chael Sonnen (29-15-1) and Wanderlei Silva (35-12-1, 1 NC) face off in a light heavyweight bout that has been in the works since 2011.
Also featured as part of the double main event is a fight between Fedor Emelianenko (36-4, 1 NC), an MMA legend many consider to be the greatest heavyweight fighter in history, and Matt Mitrione (11-5).

The blockbuster pay-per-view promotion is also adding two World Championship bouts. First, Douglas Lima (28-6) will defend his welterweight belt against Lorenz Larkin (18-5, 1 NC) and then current lightweight champion Michael Chandler (16-3) will face undefeated Brent Primus (7-0).

Tickets are on sale at ticketmaster.com and begin at $86, and there is an eight-ticket limit for the event.

Here is the full event lineup:

Bellator NYC: Sonnen vs. Silva Card (Pay-Per-View):

Light Heavyweight Main Event: Chael Sonnen (29-15-1) vs. Wanderlei Silva (35-12-1, 1 NC)

Heavyweight Main Event: Fedor Emelianenko (36-4, 1 NC) vs. Matt Mitrione (11-5)

Welterweight World Title Bout: Douglas Lima (28-6) vs. Lorenz Larkin (18-5, 1 NC)

Lightweight World Title Bout: Michael Chandler (16-3) vs. Brent Primus (7-0)

Lightweight Feature Bout: Aaron Pico (Debut) vs. Zach Freeman (8-2)

BOSTON, MA – AUGUST 17: Chael Sonnen reacts after winning the fight with a tap out by guillotine choke against Mauricio Rua in their light heavyweight bout at TD Garden on August 17, 2013 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)

Michael Jai White, martial artist, star and director of the new movie Never Back Down: No Surrender, talked exclusively to uSports about his thoughts on the passing of legendary mixed martial arts star Kimbo Slice, who died of heart failure on June 6 at the age of 42.

Michael Jai White Discusses Late MMA Fighter Kimbo Slice’s Legacy

“I think Kimbo Slice resonated with people because deep down, he was a really, really good guy,” White began by saying. “I can’t imagine imagine anybody who met Kimbo that didn’t like him. Of course, he is this foreboding figure, but he was a gentleman and a real sweetheart.”

White, 48, then went on to explain how Slice, who was born Kevin Ferguson, “lifted himself up by his bootstraps,” after coming from another country [the Bahamas] and growing up in a rough area of Miami.”

“He literally fought his way out of the streets,” White stated. “I mean, how could you not feel for that.”

According to a report by the South Florida Sun Sentinel, was informed he needed a heart transplant after being diagnosed with heart failure. The Sun Sentinel also reported, citing a medical report made by the Northwest Medical Center in Margate, that Slice was admitted to the hospital on June 3, complaining of “severe abdominal pain, shortness of breath and nausea.”

“I was sad to see him go,” White finally said. “He was a friend of mine, we got to train together. He’ll be missed.”

Slice (5-2) was scheduled to fight James Thompson at Bellator 158 on July 16 in London, but according to Mike Brown, his head coach at American Top Team, Slice had intended to withdraw from the event.

“He had a few things going on,” Brown said. “He had a crazy hiccup problem and he had high blood pressure. He also had a problem that had something to do with his gallbladder. We had talked about him pulling out of the fight.”

Mike Imber, Slice’s longtime manager and childhood friend, confirmed to ESPN.com that the fighter entered the medical facility on June 3. Imber also added that Slice appeared to be doing well until Monday, when the situation turned.

“He went to Germany around March and got really sick while he was there,” Imber said. “I don’t know what he thought it was, but he just felt sick. On Friday (June 3), he had bad chest pains and went to the hospital. I went and visited him on Friday and he seemed OK. I didn’t feel like I was going to lose my friend in two days, by any means. He seemed concerned, but he seemed all right.”

Slice is survived by his six children. His oldest son, Kevin Ferguson Jr., whose nickname is ‘Baby Slice,’ made his professional MMA debut earlier this year.

“Any time I was around Kimbo, he was very humble,” said UFC lightweight Dustin Poirier, Slice’s teammate at American Top Team. “He wasn’t the person who I thought he would be. He’s a family guy. Every time I saw him, he had his kids with him. He was just a really nice guy.”

PHOTO: STUDIO CITY, CA – MAY 19: MMA fighter Kimbo Slice demonstrates MMA fighter techniques at CBS’s ‘Elite XC Saturday Night Fights’ Press Conference at CBS Radford Studios on May 19, 2008 in Studio City, California. (Photo by Stephen Shugerman/Getty Images)

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) President Dana White has fervently stated that Irish mixed martial arts fighter Conor McGregor won’t be fighting at UFC 200 on July 9, although he would like McGregor’s opponent, Ultimate Fighter 5 champion Nate Diaz, to stay on the card.

Dana White Wants Nate Diaz To Fight At UFC 200 On July 9

White told TMZ this week that he believes Diaz, 31, still stands to make a hefty payday by fighting at UFC 200 even if he will no longer be facing the Irishman.

“Obviously, I would like to keep Nate (on the card),” White stated on Monday. “Nate stands to make a lot of money on 200, I’d like to keep him on 200 but that’s up to him.”

Diaz has said that he is only interested in fighting McGregor, 27, at UFC 200. He also tweeted out on Monday that he was going on vacation after rumors began spreading that McGregor was off UFC 200 and that there was no chance he was coming back.

“He’s not mad. He’s actually pretty cool about it,” White said regarding Diaz. “This is a fight that Conor was really obsessed with and Conor really wanted this fight and Nate was like ‘whatever’. The Diaz brothers don’t get excited about too much, they really don’t. Nate always ‘I just want to be in big money fights’. Nick wants to be in big money fights.

“Even though this big money fight did fall apart, he’s not crazy. He’s not upset.”

White also added that Diaz could virtually choose any other opponent besides McGregor at UFC 200.

NEW YORK, NY – APRIL 27: UFC president Dana White appears during a media availability for UFC 200 at Madison Square Garden on April 27, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images)