Jorge Masvidal, MMA Stars Plead To 'Free' Cain Velasquez After Prison Sentence

The MMA community is rallying behind Cain Velasquez in wake of his prison sentence this week ... and many of its biggest stars -- including Jorge Masvidal -- are urging officials to release the fighting legend from custody.

Velasquez was thrown back behind bars on Monday after a judge gave him a five-year sentence in his attempted murder case ... but shortly after the order was handed down, Masvidal and others took to their social media pages to throw their support behind CV.

Gamebred wrote "#FREECAIN," as did Gilbert Burns and Joanna Jedrzejczyk. Chris Wiedman added "This is awful !!" ... while Michael Chiesa implored authorities to reconsider the case.

"Cain shouldn't serve any jail time," Chiesa said. "In the heat of the moment, what man wouldn't have a lapse in judgement to protect his family. The focus should be on the man that committed crimes much worse than what Cain did. I'm thankful he only has to serve 5 years instead of 30."

Daniel Cormier, meanwhile, sent his well wishes toward his good pal on his Instagram page ... calling him a "warrior" while writing, "You will approach this like you've done every step of your life. See you soon champ."

The case, of course, stems from a February 2022 incident Velasquez had with Harry Goularte, a man who allegedly molested one of the fighter's close relatives, on a Northern California roadway.

According to prosecutors, Velasquez chased the man down in his truck ... and opened fire on him -- accidentally striking Goularte's stepfather, Paul Bender, in the arm.

Velasquez was hit with 10 criminal charges for his actions, and after initially pleading not guilty in the case, he switched his pleas to no contest.

He stated earlier this month on the on Kyle Kingsbury Podcast he regretted his behavior ... and would take whatever punishment he was handed in stride.