Former UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez has been arrested on an attempted murder charge after a shooting in California.
The San Jose Police Department announced the 39-year-old has been arrested and faces attempted murder charges. He is being held without bail currently and is due to appear in court today.
San Hose Police stated on Twitter, “Cain Velasquez was the suspect arrested yesterday in connection with this incident. He was booked into Santa Clara County main jail for attempted murder. The motive and circumstances surrounding this incident are still under investigation at this time.”
UFC Attempted Murder Charge – Who Is Cain Velasquez?
Velasquez achieved the title of heavyweight champion in 2010 after beating Brock Lesner. He lost the belt to Junior dos Santos, then reclaimed the title in 2012. He lost the belt in 2015, and his last UFC fight was in 2019. That was when he suffered a knockout 26 seconds into a match, at the hands of Francis Ngannou.
Velasquez is considered on of the best heavyweight fighters of all time. His fans will no doubt be shocked to hear of this alleged attempted murder. His team have not responded to calls asking for a comment yet.
After retiring from fighting in 2019, he has been coaching at his gym, American Kickboxing Academy. The gym is located in San Jose.
Velasquez also took up professional wrestling for a brief period. First he attempted it in Mexico, where his parents are from. Then he joined WWE, but he was released by them at the start of the pandemic in 2020. Apparently, there were plans for him to wrestle again this year.
What do you think about this UFC heavyweight champion getting arrested on an attempted murder charge? Let us know what you think of this story on our social media channels.
Featured Image Credit: Getty Images, Rey Del Rio