Cain Velasquez proved he was one of MMA's best heavyweights ever at UFC 146 in May 2012.
Six months earlier, his first reign as UFC champion was brutally ended by Junior dos Santos.
'Cigano' shocked the world and embarrassed Cain Velasquez by knocking him out in just 64 seconds.
There was no point in an immediate rematch, so the 9-1 American welcomed Antonio 'Bigfoot' Silva to the UFC.
Photo by Donald Miralle/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Cain Velasquez abused 'Bigfoot'
A loss like Velasquez suffered against Dos Santos usually takes years to come to terms with, but the heavyweight legend managed to do so by beating the breaks of 'Bigfoot' in a three-minute demolition job.
The UFC 146 co-main event started with Silva making a serious mistake from which he was unable to recover.
A sloppy leg kick allowed Velasquez to easily bring his opponent to the ground. Once there, the 42-year-old MMA icon immediately started firing off quick ground and pound shots.
Silva, who has a BJJ black belt, was able to slow his opponent down until he connected with a clean elbow that cut him wide open. Then Velasquez hammered until 'Bigfoot' was surrounded by a pool of blood.
There was a brief pause in the beating as the cage side checked the cut. Unfortunately for Silva, the fight continued and he was mercilessly battered until he couldn't take it anymore.
Referee Josh Rosenthal eventually waved off the match as a blood-soaked Silva rose to the top as his 240-pound rivals dropped bombs on him.
In the headliner of UFC 146, Dos Santos defended his title against Frank Mir to set up a rematch with Velasquez.
Velasquez famously put on a clinic to regain his title before stopping Dos Santos in the fifth round of their third and final fight in 2013.
Cain Velasquez joins GFL
Velasquez retired from MMA after a 26-second knockout loss to Francis Ngannou in 2019.
However, he recently excited fans by announcing his return to the sport by signing with Global Fight League, a new MMA promotion that has captured a number of former UFC stars, including Dos Santos.
Unfortunately, Velasquez will not be fighting in the GFL as he will be taking on a management role alongside Javier Mendez of the American Kickboxing Academy, who has been appointed head coach of his team.
Paige VanZant's deal with GFL may be the biggest they have made to date. '12 Gauge' hasn't fought under MMA rules since leaving the UFC in 2020, but she felt compelled to do so after being offered a contract that was too good to turn down.
“They offered me a contract and I said 'Yes,'” VanZant said on her podcast. “So I'm going back to MMA, and I think this is the perfect opportunity because I certainly didn't leave MMA because I had no passion for it anymore.
“Now there's a new MMA organization that really got me excited about fighting for them. They pay their athletes legitimately. Everyone I've heard from that has negotiated their contract so far is extremely excited and happy.
“They're setting up a pension fund for the fighters, and I think health insurance… You just never know when it's going to be over, so I want to do everything I can to make as much money as I can while I can, and be able to to take care of my family. forever.”
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