UFC veteran Scott Askham signs three-fight deal with KSW

UFC veteran Scott Askham has signed a three-fight non-exclusive deal with KSW.

The UK middleweight veteran and former BAMMA champion was released by the UFC following two consecutive losses to Jack Hermansson and Brad Scott, but recently bounced back with a win over Luke Barnatt at ACB 70.

While some thought his headline clash with “Bigslow” was the beginning of things to come for the Doncaster native and ACB, he claimed that KSW put the best offer on the table for him.

“I’ll be honest, the decision was based on money. KSW are filling stadiums and doing shows all over Europe, and they put the best deal on the table for me,” Askham told MMAFighting.com.

“It was the best move for me.”

He added: “I had a lot of options on the table and I was coming off a dominant win over Luke Barnatt.

“I felt as though I beat him up in every round, so there were a lot of different promotions interested in signing me coming off that win. At the end of the day, KSW made the best offer, and we are very happy with the deal.”

KSW have boasted some top-ranked middleweights on its books over the years. Although middleweight champion Mamed Khalidov has yet to commit his future to any promotion, a matchup with the 37-year-old will certainly appeal to Askham, who hopes to test himself against the best middleweights KSW have to offer.

To add to that, middleweight Michal Materla recently turned down a contract offer from the UFC and marked his contract extension with KSW with a second-round knockout over UFC veteran Paulo Thiago at Dublin’s KSW 40 card.

“I want to get in there with the best guys they have and make a beeline for that title,” said Askham.

“I’ve signed a three-fight deal with KSW and I’m hoping that it will be extended after they see what I can bring to the table. The title is what I’m after, and I want to get straight in the mix to get a shot at it as soon as possible.”

KSW often announces its new signings at events, and the upcoming KSW 41 card on Dec. 23 seems like an ideal time to unveil the Brit to its passionate fan base.

Although Askham has heard no plans as of yet as to when his first fight will be announced, he hopes to find out more on Sunday when he travels to Poland to meet his new promoters.

“I’m flying out on Sunday and we’ll probably take a look at some opponents then,” he said.

“I haven’t heard about anything being announced at KSW 41, but it could happen. We’ll wait and see what happens when we’re over there.

“I’m ready to go now and I’m looking forward to fighting in front of the Polish fans. I train with a lot of Polish guys at the moment, and I think I might be in for a frosty reception over there depending on the opponent I get.

“Hopefully, I’ll be able to win them over when I eventually get to fight in Poland.”