Former Kofa wrestler Velasquez to fight on national TV

When Cain Velasquez takes on Jake O'Brien in a nationally televised Ultimate Fighting  Championship bout Saturday (July 19), he'll be taking a step toward his ultimate goal.

A win against O'Brien (10-1) will move the former Kofa and Arizona State wrestling standout closer to where he wants to be - UFC heavyweight champion.

Velasquez (3-0) won his only other UFC fight, an April contest against Brad Morris at UFC 83. All of Velasquez's wins have come in the first round on TKOs.

"It feels like all my hard work is paying off," Velasquez said. "I feel like I'm not there yet, but a win will certainly get me closer to where I want to be."

Velasquez said he is expecting his hardest challenge Saturday on the undercard of UFC Fight Night 14 against O'Brien, a former Purdue wrestler, at the Palms in Las Vegas at 6 p.m. on SpikeTV.

"Your next fight, I believe, is always your toughest fight," Velasquez said. "He's really athletic, has a good record and has fought some tough guys. For sure this is going to be my toughest fight. ... Hopefully we'll put on a real good show."

Saturday's fight will be the first for him on television, although Velasquez said he doesn't think it will affect him too much. Against Morris, Velasquez said there was a UFC-record crowd at the event.

"The first fight with the UFC, that was in front of a big crowd and I thought I was going to be super-nervous for that," Velasquez said. "I really wasn't. I felt really good.  I think that's how it's going to go. The crowd isn't going to play a big factor in it."

Velasquez and O'Brien both have wrestling backgrounds - O'Brien wrestled at Purdue, while Velasquez placed fifth in the NCAA tournament with the Sun Devils after winning a Pac-10 title in 2005.

"A lot of the wrestling stuff kind of helps me," Velasquez said. "If I'm faking a shot, that opens up my hands. I can fake a shot then throw hands, and it kind of keeps guys on their toes."

It's his skill in the other martial arts, mainly jujitsu, that he said he thinks gives him an advantage.

"He's tough, has a good record, a lot of experience," Velasquez said. "He's also a wrestler. He has a really good shot, takedown. It looks like he's not too comfortable with his hands. I feel I am comfortable with my hands."

Currently, Velasquez is ranked as high as 10th in some online power polls. A win Saturday against O'Brien - also ranked around ninth or 10th depending on the poll - and Velasquez moves closer to his ultimate goal.

"I want to be the UFC champion before I'm done," Velasquez said. "I want to be the No. 1 guy. To me, if I don't do that, it's a big failure."