When looking at the greatest UFC heavyweights in history, few were as dominant as Cain Velsaquez. He held the UFC Heavyweight Championship two times during his run with the MMA promotion, but after leaving Dana White’s company, he moved on to WWE for a very short and unsuccessful run. Following that, his fame started to fall away, but Velasquez found himself back in the headlines for all the wrong reasons in 2022 after he shot a man and was arrested for attempted murder. Cain has since been sentenced to prison, but his crime actually has some people supporting the former star rather than condemning him. So what happened?
Cain Velasquez’s UFC & WWE Career
He Was A Two-Time UFC Heavyweight Champion
- He defeated Brock Lesnar in just four minutes at UFC 121.
- Brock Lesnar beat him at Crown Jewel 2019.
- WWE released Velasquez in April 2020.
Cain Velasquez began his MMA career in 2006 at the age of 24. Two years later, he debuted in the UFC at UFC 83, beating Brad Morris in just over two minutes with a TKO. During his 11-year MMA career, Velasquez fought to an impressive 14-3 record, which included two reigns as the UFC Heavyweight Champion. One fight even saw him defend his title against none other than Brock Lesnar at UFC 121. The two stars headlined the event, where Velasquez dominated and defeated Brock in just 4 minutes and 12 seconds.
In 2019, with his UFC career over, Cain Velasquez decided to switch things up by signing with WWE. He went straight after his old rival, Brock Lesnar, who was now the WWE Champion. Brock was shown to be scared of Cain, but the Beast Incarnate beat Velasquez at Crown Jewel in an underwhelming match. That would be it for Velasquez, who was released by WWE in April 2020. He did wrestle for AAA a few times after leaving WWE, but it’s what happened in 2022 that would change his life forever.
Velasquez Was Arrested For Attempted Murder
He Shot At A Man Accused Of Assaulting His Son
- He shot at Harry Goularte Jr. but hit his stepfather, Paul Bender.
- Velasquez pleaded no contest to attempted murder.
- The plea took the possibility of life in prison off the table.
On February 28, 2022, in San Jose, California, Cain Velasquez decided to take revenge on a man accused of harming his son. When Cain found out that Harry Goularte Jr. had supposedly sexually molested his son at a daycare center, he decided to take the law into his own hands. Velasquez found Goularte and tracked him down during a high-speed chase. He then shot into the vehicle, but instead of hitting Goularte, he accidentally shot the man’s stepfather, Paul Bender, in the arm.
Cain Velasquez was arrested for attempted murder, and two years later, with the case finally going to trial, he pleaded no contest to the charge. The plea meant that charges of premeditated murder were dropped, taking the possibility of life in prison off the table.
He Was Sentenced To Five Years In Prison
A Civil Lawsuit Was Filed Against Harry Goularte Jr.
- With credit for time served, Velasquez will be eligible for parole in March 2026.
- He admitted to being wrong for taking the law into his own hands.
- Goularte is set to go to trial for one count of lewd acts with a minor.
In March 2025, Cain Velasquez was sentenced to five years in prison for attempted murder, with 1,283 days credit for time served from a combination of months he’d already served in jail combined with house arrest. Because of this, he will be eligible for parole in March 2026.
Before his sentencing, Velasquez spoke on Kyle Klingsbury’s podcast, where he took responsibility for his actions, saying:
“From what I can say as far as myself, the way that I handled things was not the way to do it. We cannot put the law in our own hands. … I know what I did, and I know what I did was very dangerous to other people, you know? Not just people involved, but innocent people. I understand what I did and I’m willing to do everything I have to [do] to pay that back.”
After the sentencing, many UFC fighters came forward to defend Cain, with #FREECAIN going viral.
As for Harry Goularte Jr., the man Cain Velasquez shot at, he is dealing with his own court case, as well as a civil lawsuit. In June 2022, a lawsuit, filed on behalf of Cain’s son, claimed that Goularte had molested the boy. The lawsuit was also filed against Goularte’s mother and stepfather as well, who ran the daycare center.
Harry Goularte Jr. was also charged with one count of lewd acts with a minor, to which he has pleaded not guilty. He has been out on bail with GPS monitoring ever since, but in January 2025 it was announced that in June 2025 his case was supposed to finally go to trial. There has been no update since then.
