Former Olympian Ben Askren is expected to earn the biggest paycheck of his career boxing Jake Paul on April 17, and Mike Perry is not pleased about it.
The decorated wrestler has managed to swipe a belt in nearly every promotion he’s competed in. While Askren didn’t reach the pinnacle in the UFC, he did manage to secure a win with a come-from-behind bulldog choke against the welterweight legend Robbie Lawler. Even though Askren has a lot to brag home about, the fighter is in store for the biggest payday of his life when he is set to take on Paul in a boxing match scheduled for this Saturday. The lifetime combat athlete admitted that it would likely be his biggest check ever (h/t Dexerto).
“It’s probably going to be the biggest payday of my career,” Askren said to Brendan Schaub on an episode of Food Truck Diaries.
While Askren wouldn’t declare exactly what his check would be, it was enough to get him to come back out of retirement after a hip surgery. Following the news that this boxing bout would be Askren’s biggest payday, Perry was not happy that the former Olympian was afforded such a lucrative opportunity after getting knocked out by Jorge Masvidal within seconds at UFC 239.
“So a fighter gets ko’d in 5 seconds so he gets a million dollar ppv opportunity,” Perry tweeted.
Perry is coming fresh off a unanimous decision loss to Daniel Rodriguez at UFC on ABC 2. During the fight, Rodriguez picked Perry apart on the feet. Perhaps if Perry would have channeled his inner Askren and utilized his wrestling more, the outcome could have been different.
Since Perry just went through a second consecutive defeat, it’s understandable he’s going through some frustrations. In addition, seeing a fighter who used to fight in the same weight class be afforded what is essentially a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity while retired surely ignited some feelings of negativity.
What do you make of Mike Perry’s comments about Ben Askren getting a huge payday boxing Paul? Let us know what you think below!
