Ex-UFC fighter 'died four times' before double lung transplant

Former UFC fighter Ben Askren says he "died four times" before having a double lung transplant after developing pneumonia following a bacterial infection.

The 40-year-old said he has "no recollection" of what had happened to him when the staph infection developed into pneumonia, but he has "made it out to the other side of it".

Askren, who retired from MMA in 2019 after a short stint in the UFC, was admitted to hospital in Wisconsin in June and placed on a ventilator and put on the transplant list.

Via an Instagram video , externalfrom his hospital bed, the American said he has lost 50lb (more than three and a half stone, or 22.7kg) in 45 days.

"I actually just read through my wife's journal because I don't remember anything from May 28th to July 2nd. No recollection. No idea what happened," Askren said on Wednesday.

"I just read through the journal and it's like a movie. So, I only died four times. The ticker stopped for about 20 seconds.

"I was actually on the scale yesterday, 147lb. I haven't been 147lb since I was 15 years old."

Askren thanked fans and the wrestling community for their well wishes and said he is "more motivated than ever" to get back fit and do what he can to help out.

"The thing that was most impactful to me was all the love I felt from everybody," he said. "It was almost like I got to have my own funeral. Right?"

Askren's wife, Amy, wrote on Facebook that her husband was "completely healthy just five weeks ago", prior to him becoming ill. The couple have three children.

Influencer-turned-boxer Jake Paul, who beat Askren in a boxing match in 2021, made a public plea for donations to be made for his recovery last week.

Askren is considered one of the best American wrestlers of his generation and was a welterweight champion in Bellator and One Championship.

He was unbeaten in 20 fights when he signed for the UFC in 2019, in what was an unusual move in MMA.

Askren retired from MMA with 19 wins in 22 fights.