UFC Phoenix Free Fight: Cain Velasquez Knocks Out Nogueira
Former UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez has been out of action for roughly two-and-a-half years.
He’ll return to action against knockout slugger Francis Ngannou in the main event of this weekend’s (Sun., February 17, 2019) UFC on ESPN 1 from the Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix, Arizona. Many fans, especially those who have begun watching MMA in the past few years, may not remember just how dominant Velasquez once was.
But there was a time when the Mexican-American was on his way to becoming the greatest MMA heavyweight of all-time. Injuries have unfortunately derailed that path since. Way back in 2010, however, Velasquez was on the fast track to the top of the MMA world.
He earned a title shot by knocking out former PRIDE and UFC champion Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira at UFC 110 in Sydney, Australia. This was a launching point that propelled Velasquez to stardom, as he knocked out Brock Lesnar to win the championship in his next fight. The next few years would feature extreme inconsistency from a fighter who would be a legend had he remained healthy.
It’s not over yet though. Velasquez will be back this weekend. Watch the fight that once launched him towards a title shot:
