He hasn't fought since 2016 ... but Cain Velasquez says he's still a BEAST in the Octagon -- and after he runs through Francis Ngannou, he's confident he could take Jon Jones.
36-year-old Cain is squaring off with Francis on Feb. 17 -- his first fight since defeating Travis Browne at UFC 200 in July 2016. After that fight, Cain was sidelined with bone spurs in his back.
But now, the former 2-time UFC heavyweight champ says he's been training like a maniac and feels like his old self -- and he's ready to compete with the best in the world .