Despite his decorated wrestling background, Ben Askren expressed considerable dissatisfaction with Charles Oliveira’s grappling-focused performance during his BMF title clash against Max Holloway at UFC 326.
‘Funky’ Askren is widely recognized for his stellar collegiate wrestling career, having secured two NCAA Division I championships for the Missouri Tigers with an impressive 155-8 record. His relentless style, technical skill, and consistent success firmly establish him as one of the most prominent NCAA wrestlers of all time.
Given his profound expertise in grappling, one might anticipate Askren’s endorsement of Oliveira’s strategic win. However, Oliveira’s decision to dominate through wrestling has sparked considerable debate since his victory on March 7, and Askren has now joined the growing number of critics.
“This is going to be wild coming from me. Real wild,” Askren stated, emphasizing his unexpected reaction. “What if they did a three-takedown maximum on BMF title fights? Three takedown maximum, or you only get a minute on top to this effect… No, [I didn’t like the fight]; it was boring. Terribly boring.”
Askren further elaborated on his issues with the fight, explaining, “Well, listen, even if I was a grappler, and well, [for one] it felt weird because it was a BMF fight. But number two is Charles did not, it was kind of like the [Khamzat] Chimaev fight, where Charles didn’t take chances on top. He wasn’t really aggressive with it.”
He went on to question Oliveira’s rationale for prioritizing takedowns, particularly when he seemed to be gaining an advantage in striking against Holloway. Askren presented his theory regarding Oliveira’s approach:
“He was winning the striking,” Askren mused. “But was he? But this one where, this is why I did okay in striking in MMA: Was he winning the striking because the other guy was scared of the takedown? Like, that’s definitely a possibility because Max Holloway had zero ability to get up… 21 minutes on bottom or something like that. It was something crazy.”
