Ben Askren rarely wastes an opportunity to needle UFC president Dana White. Whereas many fighters seem to tremble in fear of their boss, Askren has an uncanny knack of letting his promoter walk right into his punchlines in a way that often leaves even White, himself, smiling.

So when Askren appeared on Monday’s edition of MMA Junkie Radio, the crew decided to put him on the spot, playfully asking what the former Bellator and ONE welterweight champion would do if he was in a major promoter’s shoes.

And while Askren went along with the question in a good-natured way, he did use the opportunity to make a point: Promoters don’t need to run down their fighters in order to grow their company.

“Honestly, maybe I don’t know the full scope of it, right?” Askren said. “But, I think I could do things better by fighters. I think I could be more honest. I’ve had multiple promoters lie about me. I could be honest and do well by the fighters. I don’t think you have to (expletive) on the fighters all the time in order to have a good promotion.”

But that’s just a hypothetical, and here’s something in Askren’s immediate future: Next Monday, the four-time NCAA All-American at Missouri returns to the wrestling mat for charity, as he’ll appear at the Beat the Streets event at the Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, where he’ll meet the great Jordan Burroughs.

“They approached me about it, and I said yes immediately,” Askren said. “I think Beat the Streets is a great card. I love that event. I love what they do. I watch it every year. So when they asked it if I’d meet Jordan, I said, ‘Yeah.'”

Askren knows this match is a tall order. Burroughs is a tremendous wrestler, an Olympic gold medalist and a five-time world champion.

And while Askren has continued wrestling as part of his MMA career, that’s a different kind of wrestling, and he knows he’s going against one of the best ever do it in his prime.

But that doesn’t mean he won’t give it his best shot.

“Jordan literally could be the best American ever to do it by the time he gets done,” Askren said. “The next year will tell us a lot. John Smith won six titles in a row. Jordan has five.

“So I mean, just like anything, I have to get the match where my strength lies, and Jordan he’s really, really difficult because he’s good just about everywhere.”

With things like the Burroughs match and his upcoming UFC 239 fight with Jorge Masvidal on his plate, though, don’t expect Askren to take up the suggestion to become promoter any time soon.

“I think I could do it,” Askren said. “I think part of me would enjoy it, but I also have too many things going in my life that I already enjoy that I don’t know that I would ever go that route.”

For the full Ben Askren interview, click on the video link above.

For the latest on the upcoming schedule, check out Rumors page of our site