Cain Velasquez is a free man. The former two-time UFC heavyweight champion, who was controversially convicted of a shooting in 2022, was released from prison on Sunday after serving 11 months in prison.
Velasquez, 43, was found guilty of attempted murder and other charges and sentenced to five years in prison on March 24, 2025, in a San Jose, Calif., prison, ending a three-year saga that had repeatedly dragged on in court and sparked widespread outrage in the mixed martial arts community. Velasquez’s sentence includes time served; the former champion was incarcerated for nearly a year after the 2022 incident and spent nearly two years under house arrest on an ankle monitor.
Velasquez originally faced 10 felony charges after an 11-mile high-speed car chase with Harry Goularte, who remains accused of “repeatedly” molesting Velasquez’s then-4-year-old son. While chasing a car carrying Goulart, Goulart’s mother and Goulart’s stepfather, Paul Bender, Velasquez fired several shots with a .40-caliber pistol through the windshield, causing Bender to suffer a non-life-threatening gunshot wound to the arm.
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Velasquez’s 10-count indictment includes attempted murder, shooting at a motor vehicle or aircraft, assault with a firearm, assault with a deadly weapon, intentionally discharging a firearm from a vehicle and carrying a loaded firearm with intent to commit a felony. Velazquez has pleaded no contest to all charges.
Goulart has pleaded not guilty to one felony count of lewd conduct with a minor and is awaiting a March 9 trial start date.
Velasquez’s family has filed a separate civil lawsuit against the Goulart family and their businesses.
Before being jailed, Velasquez expressed remorse for his actions and accepted any punishment. Velasquez also said he has forgiven Goulart’s family for what happened. Goulart’s mother ran the daycare where the alleged molestation occurred.
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“What I did was not correct,” Velázquez said. “I understand that. I paid, and I will give whatever I have to do to repay all of this. I don’t think I can pay it back, but I can always learn from my mistakes and help others. That’s just the message you never know anyone. Trust your kids. Have open communication with your kids.
“[But] The way I handled things was not the right thing to do. We cannot take the law into our own hands. “
Velasquez (14-3) is one of the most decorated heavyweights of his era. In 2010, he knocked out Brock Lesnar in the first round to win the UFC heavyweight championship for the first time, and then defeated Junior dos Santos with revenge in 2012 to regain the belt again. A talented player whose career was plagued by injuries, Velasquez defended the title twice, defeating Antonio Silva and a trilogy against Dos Santos before losing to Fabricio Werdum in 2015. Velasquez fought only two more times — once in 2016 and again in 2019 — before retiring from MMA entirely.
Velasquez then briefly pursued professional wrestling, even signing with WWE in 2019-20, but was released from his contract due to financial cuts during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic.