Thought this was a pretty crazy story! I gotta say, he's not the tallest or most shredded guy, but he definitely has a scary, intense vibe about him. Couple that with his well-known wrestling credentials and yeah, fuck fighting that guy. Source -
Ryan Bader reflects on champ Cain Velasquez?s early years, scared opponents | MMA Junkie
"Losing his opponents just prior to fight time would become a frequent thing for the heavyweight fighter, and Bader saw it firsthand at a 2007 Vale Tudo event in Mexico. He, Velasquez and C.B. Dollaway all were on the card and in the beginning stages of their careers, and they got a crash course in the far-from-luxurious life of lower-level MMA.
The weigh-ins took place on a bathroom scale in a hotel lobby. The local bus system was their chauffeur. The event took place in a bull-fighting ring, and the fighters warmed up in the animal stalls. The floors were dirt, the walkway was merely plywood, and the ring’s fighting surface – if it can be called one – shocked Bader.
“It was probably lead paint,” Bader said of the surface. “It was hard as a rock. … I actually got a slam. I had the guy’s arm trapped and slammed him on his shoulder, and he basically hit concrete, which knocked him out.”
Velasquez, though, never got a chance to enter the ring.
“His opponent saw Cain and was like, ‘Hell no, I’m not fighting that guy,’” Bader said.
Promoters then tried to get a 170-pounder – one who had already fought earlier in the day – to take on the heavyweight Velasquez. The fighter initially and surprisingly agreed to the matchup. But then he, too, got a look at what stood in front of him and heard the sickening sounds coming from his pre-fight preparations.
“He was down there to warm up again, and he saw Cain hitting pads,” Bader said. “He was like, ‘That’s it. I’m done. I’m done.’”
The fight, of course, never took place.
It was part of a 16-month layoff for Velasquez, who had just two pro bouts under his belt at the time. And the inability to secure opponents showed no signs of slowing.
That’s ultimately what led Velasquez’s manager to contact the UFC despite Velasquez’s mere 2-0 record. But intrigued by the heavyweight and in need of some fresh talent for the once-barren division, UFC president Dana White agreed to check him out. The rest, of course, is history.
“Five or six people bailed out on him,” Bader said. “So he had a private workout for Dana, and look where he is today."