Velasquez surprised, 'kind of flattered' by Rothwell's PED implications

When Ben Rothwell appeared on The MMA Hour on Monday afternoon, he implied that UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez was using performance enhancing drugs.

Well, he claimed he wasn't implying anything, but did say "Let's see if (Velasquez is) still fighting the same way he has. I doubt it," when discussing what would happen once the UFC implements year-round out-of-competition drug testing in July.

"That I am?" Velasquez said at a media lunch Monday afternoon, according to MMAFighting.com's Marc Raimondi. "That's a big compliment for me, because I'm never known for physique. For someone to point that out, I'm kind of flattered."

Although Velasquez was surprised by Rothwell's claims, he attributes it to pro wrestling-esque showmanship, something "Big Ben" flashed during his post-fight rant following a submission victory over Matt Mitrione at UFC Fight Night 68 last week.

"Not being a guy who's known for his physique, known for not being on anything," Velasquez said. "I've been tested before numerous times, before and after all my fights the day of. Again, watch his after-fight speech and you can find out where he's coming from."

Velasquez wasn't tested out-of-competition prior to his upcoming bout with Fabricio Werdum at UFC 188, but is expecting to undergo testing on fight night, and fully supports the promotion's new, more stringent drug screening policy.

"That's great," Velasquez said. "I think we all need to be on the same playing field. So for them to finally be really strict on this is great for the sport. I know what I'm doing as far as what I'm doing to help me in fighting and I want my opponent to be on the same level."