Askren contemplating retirement with title shot 'far away'

Ben Askren's UFC career hasn't gone according to plan since his high-profile trade from ONE Championship.

The formerly undefeated welterweight suffered his second straight defeat after losing to Demian Maia on Saturday at UFC Singapore, throwing his MMA future into question.

Askren admitted that he's thinking about retiring during a Monday appearance on Ariel Helwani's MMA Show.

"Retirement is definitely something I am considering," Askren said. "I would be lying to you if I said I was not. It's a time-cost analysis. I have a lot of things I want to do in my life. I'm a really busy guy. I have a lot of things I'm passionate about and I love."

Askren refused to say if he's leaning more toward retiring or continuing his career, adding that his feelings are "very, very mixed."

The former ONE and Bellator champion was attempting to rebound from a historic five-second knockout loss to Jorge Masvidal that threw off his championship aspirations.

Askren, who was retired before joining the trade, said the likely long road back to a shot at UFC gold could impact his decision.

"The only thing I really came back for was to try to prove I was the best in the world," Askren said. "... After the Masvidal fight, if I beat Demian Maia, I'm probably one more good win away from the title shot, right? Now I look at my path and I think, 'Oh, shit, I'm kind of far away.'"