Former heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez, whose rematch with Fabricio Werdum at Friday’s UFC 207 was canceled under some strange circumstances, released a statement on Wednesday offering his side of the story.
On December 24, the Nevada State Athletic Commission ruled Velasquez medically ineligible for the bout. But there’s more to the story.
The NSAC had previously cleared Velasquez to compete but reversed course after he told ESPN’s Brett Okamoto on December 21 that he couldn’t stand up for more than 10 minutes at a time and was scheduled for back surgery less than a week after the December 30 fight with Werdum. Velasquez also revealed he was taking a form of cannabidiol, the active ingredient in marijuana, to help control the pain. Cannabidiol is not banned out of competition.
There’s still more to the issue. On Wednesday morning, fellow heavyweight Ben Rothwell told Duane Finley at Flo Combat (warning: language NSFW) that he believed Velasquez went public with the information on purpose to force the NSAC to cancel the bout.
“Telling the commission you’re doing marijuana to manage pain and your back surgery is already scheduled is a surefire way to tell them you’re not fit to fight,” Rothwell told Finley. “But that’s pretty convenient because now it doesn’t look like Cain pulled out and it’s the commission who wouldn’t let him fight.”
Hours later, Velasquez published a Facebook post addressed to “fans, family and friends.” Velasquez wrote that “no one is more disappointed about not fighting at UFC 207 than I. Fighting is what I love to do. Unfortunately, circumstances out of my control are forcing me from doing so.”
At the same time, Velasquez hinted that he felt the NSAC’s decision was rushed, and made before they had a chance to thoroughly review Velasquez’s relevant medical records:
On December 24th, a conference call was held during which my doctor indicated to the NSAC that my previous CT scans, MRIs and x-rays were all indicative of me being able to fight without the expectation of further injury. At this point the NSAC requested all of these test results and we obviously agreed to comply.
Within about 10 minutes of the conference call, I casually opened Twitter and read that I had been pulled from UFC 207 even though the NSAC had not had the chance to review the test results I mentioned above.
Approximately one hour later I received a call from the NSAC and they confirmed that they were revoking my license to fight and apologized for the news having leaked before they had a chance to let me know.
While Velasquez did not mention Rothwell and took pains to thank the NSAC and its commissioners, he was clear to note that he intended to fight.
“I firmly believe that my team and I did everything within our power to get me to UFC 207,” Velasquez wrote. “Clearly at this point nothing can be done, but it’s equally important to mention that although I disagree with their decision to revoke my license, the NSAC has been very professional with me throughout the process.”
The 34-year-old Velasquez (14-2) added that he still planned to go through with a January 4 surgery to address the bone spurs in his back that have been giving him so many problems. However, injuries are not a new issue for Velasquez, who has fought only twice in the past three years thanks in large part to a litany of health problems.
“A few short weeks after my surgery I’ll be as ready as I always am,” Velasquez wrote, “and will again take up the road to getting my belt.”
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