Cain Velasquez has a flying crossbody ready for his lucha libre debut at Triplemania

Cain Velasquez will be trading in his MMA gloves for a luchador mask at Triplemania XXVII on Saturday, August 3. He is scheduled to compete in trios action with Cody Rhodes and Psycho Clown as his partners against Texano, Taurus, and a surprise luchador.

Velasquez arrived in Mexico City on Monday to a hero’s welcome and birthday cake. He already squeezed in an open workout with his trios partner Psycho Clown, where he practiced a flying crossbody.

Looking good!

Velasquez has spent the past three months training in California with Lucha Underground pizza connoisseur Vinnie Massaro at Pro Wrestling Revolution Training Academy.

A very interesting ESPN article by Marc Raimondi explains Velasquez’s desire and journey of trying out the sport of lucha libre. An injury layoff from his MMA career allowed time to head to the WWE Performance Center and see if his body could take the toll of workouts and drills. Velasquez was hooked and even got a clause in his most recent UFC contract that allowed professional wrestling.

Velasquez has been taking his training seriously; five days a week at up to five hours a day. Massaro praised Velasquez’s desire to understand wrestling psychology.

Most crossover stars go the one and done route in professional wrestling. Velasquez plans on continuing with lucha libre after Triplemania. He won’t be a full-time luchador due to his MMA career, but he does have eyes on competing at AAA’s shows in Madison Square Garden and the Los Angeles Forum.

Velasquez also has special wrestling gear ready for the event, but the design details are still a secret. It sounds like he will be wrestling while wearing a luchador mask.

While those clips above are pretty cool, you may be wondering what to expect out of Velasquez for his debut. AAA released footage from an open workout with Psycho Clown. They practiced for about ten minutes on tumbling, rope work, mat work, tosses, and jumps.

Based on the open workout, Velasquez’s performance could range from mediocre with a few awkward moments to super freaking awesome. I guess it all depends on how much is planned to the letter. It looked like Velasquez may have a little trouble with calls on the fly, but I assume that is to be expected for a rookie with three months of training. If AAA plans Velasquez’s role around his strengths on the mat and sprinkles in a few cool high spots, then he could deliver excellent entertainment.

What do you think of Velasquez’s training clips? How well do you think he will perform at Triplemania?

Triplemania XXVII will take place this Saturday, August 3 at 8 pm ET. You can view it live for free on AAA’s Twitch channels (Spanish, maybe English too). Check back to Cageside Seats for full coverage of the event.