Cain Velasquez
Cain Velasquez Wrestling
MAIN ACHIEVEMENTS
High School:
- 1st Place AIA Division I High School State Championship (2000, 2001)
- 1st Place AIA 5A Conference Championship (1998, 1999, 2000, 2001)
College:
- NCAA Division 1 All-American (2005, 2006)
- Pac-10 Conference Wrestler of the Year (2005)
- 1st Place Pac-10 Conference Championship (2005)
- 1st Place NJCAA Junior Collegiate Championship (2002)
- 2nd Place Pac-10 Conference Championship (2006)
- 4th Place NCAA Division 1 All-American (2006)
- 5th Place NCAA Division 1 All-American (2005)
Freestyle:
- ASICS Tiger High School All-American (2001)
- 1st Place FILA Junior Freestyle World Team Trials (2002)
MMA:
- UFC HW Champion (2010, 2012)
- Defended Title Belt Sucessfully Twice (2013)
Weight:
- 285 lbs (wrestling)
- 265 lbs (MMA)
Team:
- Kofa High School
- Arizona State University
- AKA (MMA)
Cain Velasquez Biography
Cain Ramirez Velasquez was born on July 28, 1982, in Salinas, California, United States. Cain is the son of a Mexican immigrant, Efraín Velasquez, and American-born Isabel Velasquez.
Although born in California, Cain was raised in Yuma, Arizona, where he initiated his sporting career. Competing as a dual sports athlete for the Kofa High School's wrestling and football teams (as a linebacker), Velasquez reached the captaincy of both squads.
One of Kofa's most accomplished wrestlers, Cain Velasquez compiled a 110-10 record while conquering two 5A Arizona State Wrestling titles.
After Cain finished high school, in 2001, he attended Iowa Central Community College, where he wrestled for one season, winning the NJCAA National Championship at 285 lbs. His success at ICCC earned Velasquez the interest of the Arizona State University who signed the Yuma talent. While in ASU, Cain wrestled alongside two other future UFC stars, Ryan Bader and C.B. Dollaway.
During his time at Arizona State, Cain earned D1 All American status and a Pac-10 Conference Wrestler of the Year award (2005), ending his collegiate wrestling career in 2006 with a bachelor's degree in interdisciplinary studies.
Immediately after ending his academic life, Velasquez joined one of the top mixed martial arts gyms in the US, the American Kickboxing Academy (AKA), hoping to start a career as a cage-fighter. Helped by head coach Javier Mendez and grappling instructor David Camarillo, Velasquez made his debut that very year (2006).
Velazquez quickly gained traction in MMA and within 16 months of making his MMA debut, Velasquez earned a spot in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, the biggest fighting promotion in the world. Continuing his fast rise to stardom, in only 4 years of competing inside the cage, “Cardio-Cain” - as he became known - earned the UFC heavyweight title for the first time.
While training mixed martial arts, Cain Velasquez never stopped improving on his grappling skills, earning a brown belt in Jiu-Jitsu under Dave Camarillo, and later, his black belt from Leandro Vieira, AKA's main grappling coach.
Known for his explosiveness, cardio, and offensive output, Velasquez was referenced by many in the sport's media as, arguably, the best heavyweight in MMA history. Although the sport had never seen an athlete as talented as Cain in the division, his career would be plagued by many injuries from early on, including rotator cuff tears and bone spurt issues. These would eventually shorten the continuity and longevity of the Arizona athlete.
Understanding that his cage-fighting days were near the end, Cain Velasquez started rebranding himself as a Lucha Libre luchador - Mexican pro-wrestler - in early 2019, then signing with the Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide promotion.
In October 2019, after 6 years of struggling with injuries and unable to compete regularly inside the octagon, the former heavyweight champion notified the UFC of his retirement from the sport.
His success on the Mexican rings earned the attention of the world famous WWE organization, who signed Velasquez in late 2019. Arizona's powerful heavyweight did perform for the American promotion but ended being released from his contract in April 2020 due to budget cuts resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Finishing With A Rear Body Lock by Cain Velasquez