Boxing

Ben Askren Sends Clear Message About Jake Paul, Dana White Surgery Donation Rumors

Ben Askren addressed Jake Paul's claim that Dana White didn't donate to his life-saving surgical procedure.
Grant Young|
IMAGO / Dreamstine

In the summer of 2025, longtime MMA fighter Ben Askren (who fought and lost a boxing match to Jake Paul in 2021) was hospitalized and in critical condition because of health complications that stemmed from having pneumonia combined with a severe staph infection.

In order for Askren to survive, he needed a double lung transplant, which was going to cost $2 million. But because his health insurance wasn't going to cover the cost of this tricky procedure, the combat sports community started fundraising to help the Askren family get the amount needed.

Ultimately, the combat sports community fundraised enough money, and Askren was able to have the procedure. He now has two new lungs and is on the (admittedly long) road to recovery.

Jake Paul is one person who was rumored to have donated a lot of money toward Askren's surgery. And when speaking with the media after his win over Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in June, Paul said, "It sucks that no one is doing anything. I was obviously super busy this week, so we're figuring out the donation now. But none of these people, like Dana [White] or anyone, are stepping in. So I feel like I have to do something."

Jake Paul
IMAGO / NurPhoto

Ben Askren Reveals Jake Paul, Dana White Surgery Donation Support

Jake Paul has a longstanding beef with Dana White. However, it still was surprising to hear him call White out in this way when discussing such a emotionally charged matter.

White was asked whether he contributed to Askren's donation after the UFC's July 12 event and said, "Yeah. I usually don't talk about that stuff. But yes I did. I did. We reached out to his wife as soon as we heard, and told her if there's anything else you need, and yes, I did."

And Ben Askren has confirmed this for both Paul and White during his September 29 appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show.

"Jake Paul and Dana White both donated... They were both very generous," Askren said, per an X post from Ariel Helwani. "And I'm grateful that they felt generous enough." He went on to add that he doesn't just want to spotlight the donors who gave an objectively large amount of money because every amount mattered, no matter how much it was or who donated it.

It's great that Askren is healthy enough to speak about anything after what he went through a few months ago. And his clearing the air about these donation rumors should put this matter to rest.

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Grant Young
GRANT YOUNG

Grant Young is a Staff Writer for On SI’s Boxing, New York Mets, Indiana Fever, and Women’s Fastbreak sites. Before joining SI in 2024, he wrote for various boxing and sports verticals such as FanBuzz and NY Fights. Young has a bachelor’s degree in marketing and a master’s degree in creative writing with an emphasis on sports nonfiction from the University of San Francisco, where he played five seasons of Division 1 baseball. He fought Muay Thai professionally in Thailand in 2023, loves a good essay, and is driven crazy trying to handle a pitpull puppy named Aura. Young lives in San Diego and was raised in the San Francisco Bay Area.