Cain Velasquez: Future Unlimited

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Mark these words: Cain Velasquez will be a heavyweight champion.

He is one of four men vying for Brock Lesnar 's throne. The other three: former heavyweight champion Frank Mir, another undefeated prospect in Shane Carwin , and the legendary Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira , who Velasquez will battle on February 20. Exalted company indeed.

In April of 2008, Velasquez made his Octagon debut with a record of just 2-0. Two minutes and ten seconds later, he was 3-0, and he has gone on to brutalize four more opponents.

His last two fights, against French striker Cheick Kongo and former IFL champion Ben Rothwell , were huge steps up in competition, and although he mauled Rothwell en route to a second-round stoppage, it was the Kongo fight that showed what Cain is made of.

Coming into his UFC 99 bout on June 13, 2009 in Germany, Velasquez was 5-0. Kongo, his opponent that night, had four times as many fights.

Though he walked through his first two opponents in the UFC, Kongo represented a new class of competition, and was considered a legitimate heavyweight contender. Velasquez's hype train was in danger of being derailed.

Kongo dropped Velasquez in the opening seconds of rounds one and two, but he showed remarkable composure for such a young and inexperienced fighter. He went on to display stifling top control and ground-and-pound, and won all three rounds on all three scorecards. It was the only fight in his career to have gone the distance.

His next fight, against Ben Rothwell, was nowhere near as competitive. Although some, including Rothwell, decried the stoppage a minute into the second round as early, it was easy to see where the fight was headed. Velasquez dominated in the clinch and on the ground, and Rothwell should consider himself lucky the fight was stopped when it was.

Velasquez's opponents have been getting better and better, but now the former Arizona State All-American will be thrown into the deep end of the heavyweight division when he faces the iconic Nogueira.

"Minotauro" is known for being the one of the most resilient fighters ever, capable of receiving horrific beatings and turning the tables in an instant to submit his assailant.

After being stopped for the first time in his career by Frank Mir , Nogueira rebounded with a vintage performance against Randy Couture .

According to Nogueira himself during a live chat on Feb. 16, it was the former Pride heavyweight champion's best win (and with all due respect to Clay Guida and Diego Sanchez , Nogueira v Couture was 2009's fight of the year).

Velasquez's abuse of sparring partners is well-documented , but he's hardest on himself. In post-fight interviews, he always says he's not pleased with his performance and needs to do better. Some fighters might get complacent after finishing four of five UFC opponents; Velasquez just trains harder.

So, a recap. Cain Velasquez is young (27), and without ten years of wear-and-tear in the fight game; trains as hard as anyone else in a world-class gym; is a former Division I All-American at one of the most respected wrestling programs in the country; and has shown composure under fire and excellent recovery.

If Velasquez beats Nogueira on Saturday, can he be heavyweight champion? This is the UFC's heavyweight division, where an ex pro-wrestler got a title shot after his fourth MMA fight; stranger things have happened.