Remember when Cain Velasquez was in WWE?
The MMA star is an accomplished and celebrated former UFC Heavyweight Champion who put an end to Brock Lesnar’s title run at UFC 121. However, once his UFC career had slowed down, Cain decided to try his hand at professional wrestling. The California native was always a fan of the sport growing up and started wrestling for Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide.
Cain picked up wrestling really quick and started gaining traction in the business because of his strong performances. There was chatter that AEW was interested in bringing in Cain. But WWE ultimately beat him to the punch and signed the former UFC Champion in 2019. Immediately, Cain went into the main event scene by challenging Brock Lesnar for the WWE Championship at Crown Jewel. Unfortunately, the 42-year-old lost that match very quickly and was never seen in a WWE ring again.
Recently, the former WWE star talked to Ariel Helwani on The Ariel Helwani Show and reflected on his limited time in WWE. He enjoyed the experience as it was his childhood dream.
“For me, it was about living a childhood dream, it was something I was very fond of—a great experience. It’s all a learning experience, right? No, it wasn’t anything else. It was something I wanted to do, so I did it. The road of learning never stops, and that’s why we’re here. We’re here to learn, to teach each other, and to grow together. Now, for me, it’s about helping others—the people coming up. I’m learning from the guys training now, just like the ones who were in the position I was a couple of years ago.”
But he’s definitely not content on how his WWE career went down.
“No.” Cain responded when he was asked about being content with his WWE career. “ For me, working with the lucha guys was something that really hit home. WWE was great as well, but there’s just something about lucha—their style—that I had to experience for myself. It was for my childhood, and I’m glad I did it. As far as pro athletes go, we go out there to show what we’re made of and to showcase who we are. That’s exactly what I did.”
It’s a shame that Velasquez didn’t get to show off what he could really do in WWE as he was genuinely exciting to watch during his matches in AAA Lucha Libre.