Daniel Cormier says his teammate could have been the heavyweight GOAT ‘by far’.
That’s high praise coming from the former two-division UFC champion, who once held the light heavyweight and heavyweight belts at the same time.
Cormier began his MMA career as a heavyweight, but dropped down to 205 lbs once he started gaining traction in the UFC heavyweight division.
This was out of respect for his longtime friend and training partner Cain Velasquez, the heavyweight champion from 2012 to 2015.
Velasquez is considered one of the greatest heavyweights of all time, with Cormier detailing just how good the former champ was and what ultimately cost him in the long run.
Daniel Cormier says Cain Velasquez would’ve been the heavyweight GOAT ‘by far’ if it weren’t for injuries
Velasquez went 12-3 in the UFC heavyweight division with four title fight wins and two successful title defenses.
Velasquez still holds the longest heavyweight title reign in UFC history, but it’s worth noting Velasquez was out for nearly two years during that time because of injuries.
If it weren’t for those setbacks, Cormier believes Velasquez would have undoubtedly been the greatest heavyweight fighter of all time.
“The best,” Cormier said of witnessing Velasquez’s rise on Aljamain Sterling’s YouTube channel.
“I’ve never seen anything like it. I still today have not seen anything like it.
“The training, the the skill set, the ability. He really could do it all.
“If he didn’t have all those injuries, he would be by far the greatest heavyweight of all time,” Cormier claimed.
“No one would’ve beaten him.
“He was one of those kids that had nothing. He had so little that when he would get mixed up with people, no matter what they told him to do, he would do.
“The strength coach told him to leg press 800 pounds. He’d leg press 800 pounds. He just did everything, bro,” Cormier added.
“He was a monster, and he just worked and he worked and he worked. And he worked himself into injury after injury after injury,” Cormier said of Velasquez.
Velasquez had wins over Brock Lesnar, Junior Dos Santos (x2), Antonio Silva (x2), Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira, Ben Rothwell and more.
Cain Velasquez’s last UFC win came at UFC 200
It’s been over six years since Velasquez last fought and nearly a decade has passed since his last win.
Velasquez’s most recent win came at a milestone event in UFC 200 back in 2016.
Velasquez made quick work of UFC veteran Travis Browne, knocking him out in the final seconds of round 1.