Sonnen admits Askren's wrestling comeback after double lung transplant 'makes me uncomfortable'

Ben Askren steps back into competition at RAF 11 in Milwaukee this Saturday, facing former UFC welterweight champion Belal Muhammad in the co-main event — a return that comes more than a year after a severe pneumonia diagnosis that required a double lung transplant and nearly cost him his life.

After spending close to two months in hospital, Askren was discharged and has continued to recover at home. He has also been working as one of RAF’s matchmakers since the promotion launched less than a year ago.

RAF color commentator Chael Sonnen, who will be calling the action on Saturday, says the bout has stirred mixed emotions in him — and that he suspects he is not alone.

“It makes me uncomfortable,” Sonnen told MMA Fighting on the red carpet at the Fighters’ Only MMA Awards. “When I read about it, the response was supposed to be excitement. It was supposed to be inspirational, and I am getting there, by the way. It is exciting, it is inspirational, but I was uncomfortable at first.”

Sonnen also argued that Muhammad’s willingness to take the fight deserves more recognition than it has received. The former UFC titleholder makes his second RAF appearance after suffering a tech fall loss to David Carr at RAF 4 in December, and Sonnen believes he is carrying a significant share of the weight in making this moment possible.

“I thought, what a stud Belal Muhammad is for taking this,” Sonnen said. “I don’t think very many people would have taken this risk, and Belal realized one thing, which is, if I don’t do this, Ben doesn’t get the opportunity, and that part of the story is not being told, and it deserves to be told.”

Sonnen added that Muhammad has historically been undervalued by the media. “I think that Belal Muhammad has always gotten a bad shake in the media. I don’t think the media has ever been fair to him, and I think that he is every bit the star of this contest that Ben Askren is.”