Cain Velasquez is heading to jail. The previous two-time UFC heavyweight champion was sentenced to 5 years of jail time on the Santa Clara County Corridor of Justice in San Jose on Monday, ending a three-year saga that has been repeatedly delayed within the courts.
Santa Clara County Superior Court docket Decide Arthur Bocanegra oversaw the case. NBC Bay Space first reported the information Monday.
Velasquez, 42, confronted 10 felony prices stemming from a 2022 incident through which he engaged in an 11-mile high-speed automobile chase with Harry Goularte, who’s accused of molesting Velasquez’s then 4-year-old son on “a number of events.” Velasquez fired a number of photographs from a .40-caliber handgun in the course of the chase right into a automobile carrying Goularte, Goularte’s mom and Goularte’s stepfather Paul Bender, leading to non-life threatening accidents to Bender attributable to a gunshot wound to his arm.
Velasquez pleaded no contest to all prices associated to his case.
Talking lately on the podcast of former teammate Kyle Kingsbury, Velasquez expressed regret for his actions and accepted no matter punishment got here his method. Velasquez additionally stated he has forgiven Goularte’s household for what occurred; Goularte’s mom ran the daycare the place the alleged molestation occurred.
“What I did was not appropriate,” Velasquez stated. “I perceive that. I paid and I’ll pay no matter else so far as what I’ve to do to pay all that again. I don’t assume I pays that again, however I can all the time study from my errors and assist others. It’s simply info that you just by no means know anyone. Belief your children. Have that open communication along with your children.
“[But] the best way that I dealt with issues was not the best way to do it. We can’t put the regulation in our personal fingers.”
Velasquez (14-3) is among the most adorned heavyweights of his period. He first captured the UFC heavyweight title in 2010 with a first-round knockout of Brock Lesnar, then gained the belt again once more in 2012 with a revenge win over Junior dos Santos. A prodigious expertise whose profession was perennially snakebitten by accidents, Velasquez defended his championship twice with wins over Antonio Silva and in a trilogy bout towards dos Santos, earlier than struggling a 2015 loss to Fabricio Werdum. Velasquez solely fought twice extra — as soon as in 2016 and as soon as in 2019 — earlier than stepping away from MMA completely.
Velasquez then briefly pursued skilled wrestling and even signed with WWE from 2019-20 earlier than being launched from his deal attributable to monetary cuts in the course of the early levels of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Velasquez was anticipated to function the supervisor of Staff Dubai for the World Combat League’s debut season in 2025, alongside his longtime coach at San Jose’s American Kickboxing Academy, Javier Mendez. That clearly will not occur in mild of Monday’s information.
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