Former UFC Champion jailed after guilty verdict
Former UFC heavyweight champion Caín Velásquez was sentenced to five years in prison for a shooting he was involved in in 2022.
This Monday, former UFC heavyweight champion Caín Velásquez was sentenced to five years in prison for his involvement in a shooting incident in February 2022. The 42-year-old received his sentence at the Santa Clara County Courthouse in San Jose, California.
In August, Velásquez pleaded not guilty to charges of attempted murder, assault, and weapons violations. The charges stemmed from an incident in which he pursued and repeatedly fired at a vehicle carrying a man accused of sexually abusing his minor son at a daycare center owned by the man’s mother.
The high-speed chase spanned 17.7 kilometers on the afternoon of February 28, 2022. During the incident, the man’s father, who was also in the vehicle, was shot and injured.
UPDATE: Cain Velasquez’s attorney expects he’ll serve 1 year, because he’ll get credit for time served in jail and the time he did at home with an ankle monitor.
— Ian Cull (@NBCian) March 24, 2025
Who is Caín Velásquez?
Velásquez had been out on bail since November 2022 and had recently taken public responsibility for his actions.
“From what I can tell, the way I handled things was not the right way,” Velásquez admitted on former teammate Kyle Kingsbury’s podcast. “We can’t take the law into our own hands... I know what I did was very dangerous—not just for those involved, but for innocent people as well. I understand my actions, and I’m willing to do everything I can to seek justice,” he added.
Caín Velásquez won the undisputed UFC heavyweight championship in October 2010 by knocking out Brock Lesnar. He became a dominant figure in the promotion, defending his title multiple times. However, recurring injuries shortened his career, leading to his retirement in 2019.
🚨 BREAKING: Cain Velasquez has been found guilty of his charges and has been sentenced to 5 years in prison for attempted murder and additional gun assault charges in March 2022, per @NBCian pic.twitter.com/iIAzTEcHs6
— Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight) March 24, 2025
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