In brief

  • Former UFC fighter Ben Askren has changed his Twitter name to "Bitcoin Halving May 13."
  • He has also speculated about the price of Bitcoin.
  • In the past, the fighter was sponsored by the Litecoin Foundation for UFC 235.

Former UFC fighter Ben Askren has voiced his support for Bitcoin by changing his public name on Twitter to “Bitcoin Halving May 13.”

The Bitcoin halving, currently scheduled for May 13, is an event where mining rewards are cut in half. This means that the new supply of Bitcoin gets cut in half.

When asked about what direction Bitcoin’s price might take after the halving, Askren answered with just a crescent emoji, implying it will go “to the Moon”—a phrase that, in crypto circles, means up.

Meanwhile, bullish sentiments toward crypto are hardly uncharacteristic for Askren. Last October, he also sparked a “Bitcoin v gold” debate on Twitter.

“Someone gives you a $10,000 that you can’t touch for 10 years, would you rather have the 10k gift in [Gold, Bitcoin, or a US treasury bonds]?” Askren asked his 270,000 (at that time) Twitter followers. After the poll was closed, 49.7% of 64,185 people had cast their votes for Bitcoin.

In January 2020, Askren was also sponsored by the Litecoin Foundation for UFC 235.

As Decrypt reported on February 25, the UFC has partnered with Dapper Labs, a company that builds digital collectibles on the blockchain, to help bring the technology to the sport. Previously, the UFC also worked with Litecoin, advertising its logo at UFC 232.

In less than 35 days, we’ll see if Askren’s fighting spirit has rubbed off on Bitcoin.

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