The relationship between Ben Askren and Jorge Masvidal has evolved from rivalry to friendship.
Their fight at UFC 239 marked a turning point for both fighters' careers. It lasted only five seconds, but Masvidal's lightning-fast flying knee propelled him from a name in fighting circles to a crossover star, while Askren's first professional loss marked the beginning of the end of his career.
Masvidal went on to win the inaugural BMF title bout against Nate Diaz and challenge for the UFC welterweight title, while Askren lost his next fight to Demian Maia and exited the UFC.
Sitting feet apart, while discussing various topics, Askren and Masvidal revisited their fight that night at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Askren explained that the flying knee
resulted from a severe miscalculation on his part.
"No one threw a flying knee prior to you the way you did it," Askren told Masvidal on "Death Row MMA." "If you think about this, I was never worried about a flying knee, because generally, it's when you're tighter, and you come almost straight up at 'em, right? You did more of a jumping trajectory, and so I think in my own head, I completely misjudged your trajectory, because I never, ever seen anyone do it like that before. Maybe I'm wrong, I can't think of someone prior to you who did that running trajectory."
Masvidal credited the technique to Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto, although he said his was slightly different. Yamamoto won a main event at K-1 HERO'S in 2006 against Kazuyuki Miyata in just four seconds with a flying knee. Naturally, like Masvidal's knockout of Askren, it was one of Yamamoto's best career highlights.
"I couldn't predict it," Askren said. "I didn't know where it was coming from, and you know, your brain builds these prediction patterns. ... Obviously, I misread it, and you're done."
While Askren's prediction was incorrect, Masvidal revealed that his preparation in the film room made the viral moment happen. For Masvidal, studying strikers came easily to him, but wrestlers and grapplers were a different territory.
"I would watch all of your fights," Masvidal told Askren. "Another guy I watched a lot was Demian Maia. 'What are these guys doing? Just f*cking these guys up. These guys are like good grapplers.' So, I gotta be honest: I just noticed in a lot of your fights, if all of a sudden, you were in a range that you didn't like, you would shoot, or you would find a way to clinch. Whether you get to two on one, or you got an underhook, or you got to a single leg. So, I was like, 'How about if I could do that? I could just all of a sudden change the speed and close it, and when he goes to the wrestling, I'm prepared for it.' The last thing I want to do is defend anything from you guys."
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Jorge Masvidal, Ben Askren come together to revisit historic flying knee KO
