Velasquez Filling the Voids in Life and His Career

UFC 99 Poster Related Products Cage Fighter Las Vegas Tee - Black UFC 99: Franklin Vs Silva DVD - Ultimate 2 Disc Collection UFC 99 Official Program Cage Fighter Big Cage Hat - Black Related News UFC 106 Fight Club Q and A with Cain Velasquez and Dana White PART 1 UFC 106 Fight Club Q and A with Cain Velasquez and Dana White PART 2 Official UFC 106 Weigh-In Results Tito Ortiz’ New Beginning Forrest Griffin – The Quest to Get That Winning Feeling Back Headlines Official UFC 106 Weigh-In Results Tito Ortiz’ New Beginning Forrest Griffin – The Quest to Get That Winning Feeling Back UFC 106: Fantasy Preview Parisyan is out of UFC 106; Bout with Hazelett Off

By Mike Russell

For years, wrestling was Cain Velasquez’s passion, but despite enjoying considerable success competing for Arizona State and consistently landing in the top five in NCAA and Pac-10 rankings and tournaments, he began to feel like something was lacking in his battles on the mat. Although the point-based sport provided the two-time All American a technical and cerebral outlet to showcase his athletic abilities, winning by points, takedowns and dominant positions had lost its appeal. He wanted to fight for real.

“I loved wrestling and I loved everything about it but there was just something missing and that was the striking part that MMA has. Whenever I practiced or competed, I always had the urge to hit the guys I was wrestling against,” Velasquez says. “That was always the one thing that was missing to make it a fight. When I was wrestling, everything was about wrestling but as soon as I was done with it, I wanted to start striking.”

Deciding to follow in the footsteps of his former Sun Devil teammates Ryan Bader and CB Dollaway, he began training and competing in mixed martial arts as soon as he graduated. Ironically, Velasquez says it was his college wrestling coach, who had previously talked him out of abandoning his wrestling career to pursue his MMA aspirations, who introduced him to American Kickboxing Academy owner and head trainer Javier Mendez.

“I had followed MMA since I was younger and I figured I’d give it a shot. I wanted to start training when I was in college. My coach had ties to AKA and he told me if I was serious about trying [MMA] he would introduce me to the right people after I finished school and when I was done with wrestling,” he recalls.

Raised in Salinas, California and Yuma, Arizona, by first generation Mexican-American parents, Velasquez says the lack of respectable Latino public figures in sports and the media for his peer group to look up to made him set easily attainable goals for himself. Proud of his heritage, as evidenced by his “Brown Pride” chest piece tattoo, the UFC heavyweight contender is hoping he can become a positive influence to young Latinos who aspire to become fighters. He says the advice he would share with them is not to limit themselves and to set lofty goals, even if they need to blaze trails to achieve them.

“I got my tattoo because I wanted people to know I was Mexican and that I was doing good things with my life. I’m really proud of what I went through to get where I am. Growing up, there wasn’t anyone in the media [who was of Mexican decent] who I could look up to,” Velasquez says. “There wasn’t anyone who looked like me [in the media], so I never thought I would do something good. I figured I would just go out and join the regular work force. I never thought I’d make a career out of wrestling or fighting. I just wanted everyone to say I was just like them and that I was good at what I did.”

What he lacks in technical skill, the six-foot-one, 240-pound heavyweight makes up for in sheer strength and the frenetic pace he maintains while training. Praised by his AKA teammates Josh Koscheck, Jon Fitch, Mike Swick and Bobby Southworth for his incomparable work ethic in the gym. Having only trained in MMA for less than three years, Velasquez’s reasoning for paying his dues with sweat-equity is simple, yet understated.

“I never really started training and said ‘I want a title shot in two years or five years’. I’ve always wanted to continue to get better and to work my way up the ladder and that’s what I’ve done. A lot of the guys I fight have a lot more experience than me. Every opponent is going to be tougher than the last so I just continue to work harder than I did for the last fight,” he explains. “Every day, every week and every month I learn something new and I’m constantly adapting. I think I’m one of the toughest guys here right now, but everyone in the division is tough and has something unique. I just concentrate on putting in my work in the gym and in my fights and I know it’s going to pay off.”

With the buzz surrounding his flourishing career and another win or two in the UFC, the payoff might come sooner than expected for the 26-year-old who has been mentioned by many MMA analysts as being a viable contender to current UFC heavyweight kingpin Brock Lesnar’s belt. Velasquez (5-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) admits he would take the fight tomorrow if it was offered but says publicly asking for his shot, as has become the norm for fighters in recent years, is not his style.

“Whatever the UFC wants to do is fine by me. If they want me to have more fights before I get a title shot, then that’s what I’ll do. I’ll continue to climb the ladder until they think I’m ready and I’ll fight for the title whenever that day comes,” says Velasquez. “Brock is fast and he’s really strong. Fighting him would be a challenge because we both come from wrestling backgrounds but I love a challenge.”

Velasquez’s next big challenge will come June 13 at UFC 99 in Cologne, Germany in the form of six-foot-four, 232-pound French kickboxing behemoth Cheick Kongo (24-4-1 MMA, 7-2 UFC) who fills in for injured Heath Herring. In spite of the obvious size disparity, Velasquez says he’ll feel right at home facing his much larger opponent and that his game plan will likely prove the difference.

“Pretty much all of the guys in the gym I spar with are six-foot-three, six-foot-four. Their height and reach are right there with [Kongo’s]. They make my sparring almost as tough as a fight. I think I’m ready for him. I’ve watched a lot of tape on him from a few years ago right up to his most recent fight. I’ve paid attention to the areas he’s improved in and to what he does when he’s in certain situations,” he says. “He’s improved a lot on his wrestling and his takedown defense but they still aren’t anything I’m worried about. I believe his standup is one of the best in the UFC. I think we match up well but I also think I’m going to have to go out there and fight a smart fight.”

One hundred percent recovered from a surgery-requiring meniscus tear he incurred in his win over Jake O’Brien at a UFC Fight Night event last July that kept him out of the gym for only two months, Velasquez asserts he has never felt more prepared for a fight. He says Kongo will be in for a long, or possibly short night if he thinks he can add another KO or TKO to his record of ten such finishes at his expense.

“I’ve never been hurt before,” says Velasquez. “I’ve trained hard here with some hard punchers at AKA for the past two-and-a-half years and I’ve had five fights and I’ve never been knocked out or gotten my bell rung yet.”

Another card stacked against Kongo is that Velasquez has already promised someone very special to him the win and says he doesn’t want to let his newest fan down.

“Me and my girlfriend just had a baby girl four weeks ago. We named her Coral Love Velasquez That’s the most exciting thing for me right now. It has been an awesome experience. I’m going to dedicate this fight to her.”

Share |