Metal85
MuscleChemistry Registered Member
In many ways, April 30 should make a fitting end for Randy Couture’s career.
Couture, one of the great competitors in the sport’s history, has said his final fight will be at the biggest live event the company has ever produced, UFC 129 at the Rogers Centre in Toronto.
Couture will be in the familiar position of being a heavy underdog against a much-younger opponent when he faces former light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida before a sellout crowd of 55,000 fans.
More From Dave Meltzer
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The five-time former UFC champion insists the ability to retire on such a big stage was didn’t affect his decision to hang up the gloves.
“It really plays no factor in the decision I’ve made,” said Couture, who turns 48 in June. “It’s one that’s been coming for a while. I realize I’ve pushed it a lot further than anybody is going to push it and I just feel like I want to go out on my terms, and not after one or two or three losses and everybody else telling you that you should be retiring. I kind of want to do it when I want to do it. I think now is that time.”
Machida, the Brazilian-Japanese son of a karate master possesses a style that is almost impossible to figure out.
“They offered me a couple of other guys and I turned them down,” said Couture. “I’ve watched Lyoto for a couple of years now and am very appreciative of the way he competes. He just has such a unique style as an athlete. And I like that. Those are the kinds of fights that are intriguing and interesting for me.”
Couture (19-10) takes a three-fight winning streak into the bout against arguably the most all-around skilled opponent he’s faced. Machida (16-2) is a 13-to-4 favorite on the Las Vegas books and is 15 years younger than Couture.
But Machida has lost two straight and is coming off three consecutive lackluster performances, and is far from his unbeatable reputation of two years ago, when he won the light heavyweight title.
There are some who feel Machida, or at least the version of Machida that burst on the scene a few years ago, because of his unique style, would be the toughest opponent for current champion Jon Jones. But a loss here would likely mean it would be years, if ever, before he’d be challenging for a title.
Machida’s game is being difficult to catch. It’s based on quick movements forward and backward, quick and usually accurate strikes, and then getting out of trouble. But his controversial decision win over Mauricio “Shogun” Rua at UFC 104 ended his aura of invincibility. Then he was knocked out quickly in their rematch last year. His style again failed him against Quinton Jackson in his last fight. Machida was clearly the better fighter, but lost due to not being aggressive enough in the first two rounds, enabling Jackson to steal two of the three rounds on the scorecards.
Couture’s style is built on an aggressive clinch game. If Machida takes too long to find an opening, he could find himself on the wrong end of a decision. The key for Couture is whether he can close the distance, tie up Machida, and keep him in his world. But a perfect game plan will only work if Couture is also close to his physical peak.
Machida is the only fighter at UFC 129 who has competed in front of such a large crowd. His pro debut in 2003 was at the Tokyo Dome before 38,000 fans.
“He doesn’t feel that it’s an advantage,” said Machida through interpreter Ed Soares. “Because in the events that he fought in Japan that had 55-60,000 people, it’s a different type of crowd. They’re not as rowdy and as emotional as some of the American and Canadian fans are. So he doesn’t feel that will serve as any sort of advantage. I mean, this is an experience to walk into a stadium with 55,000 fans screaming. It’s going to be the same type of experience for him that it is for everybody else.”
Couture already had a storybook ending all but written for him with his Aug. 28 win over James Toney. To the crowd, he represented UFC against boxing in what was more of a freak-show match than a serious competition.
But Couture’s three-fight win streak isn’t all that impressive when you size them up with Machida. Couture’s win over Brandon Vera, where Vera played his game, was one in which the decision still could have gone either way. And Vera is not at Machida’s level as a fighter. Couture ran through Mark Coleman, a fighter from his own generation, but one not nearly as well-preserved. And Toney, a boxing champion who showed up far from his best, only possessed one threat, which was landing a big punch before the almost-inevitable takedown, and that didn’t happen.
But Couture said it’s not about going out with a “W.”
“Win, lose or draw, it doesn’t really factor into the equation,” he said. “It’s about where I’m at in my life. I’ve been doing this for a long time. It’s about the journey. It’s about the performance. As long as I go in there and have a good performance, I will be satisfied.”
Couture had avoided specific retirement announcements while giving hints almost every time asked, because he retired once in 2006, returned, and won the heavyweight title the following year.
He said he doesn’t want to be like Brett Favre, who continually retired and returned. But Couture noted this is a very different decision from the first time around.
“Lots of different circumstances regarded me stepping out back out there coming off of a divorce, just a lot of things stacked up and I needed the break. I needed to kind of let the dust settle, to get back to feeling like me, and get back to training and all of those other things back then. A lot of different circumstances now. I’m perfectly content and happy in my life. Things are going fantastic. In fact, they couldn’t be going any better.”
Couture’s career has spanned several different eras in a rapidly changing sport. And unlike most single-disciplined athletes who came into it with the mentality of proving their style was superior, Couture developed into learning every style. While his core game is still wrestling, he was susceptible to submissions when he started. But he hasn’t been caught in a submission in a decade. And remarkably, he probably peaked as a fighter at 43, when he outboxed heavy-hitter Gabriel Gonzaga and 6-feet-8 striker Tim Sylvia in his final title reign.
Couture was recruited into UFC in 1997 as what was believed to have been a slightly past-his–prime Greco-Roman wrestling specialist in the days of style vs. style. Since then, Couture set a slew of company records including most championship reigns (five) and most championship fights (15), and has been one of the building blocks of the promotion. He started out right as the company was facing political pressures that took it from its first peak levels in 1995-96, to its darkest days. After he won his first heavyweight title in 1997, there were few places MMA was even allowed to be held, and now it’s staged in major arenas around the world.
“Well, it’s certainly exciting to be involved in a card like this with the guys that are on this card and have it be before a crowd of 55,000 or more and kind of set a new attendance record,” he said. “The first fight in the province of Ontario, and there’s a lot of firsts here. So it’s certainly fun for me to be part of that whole thing and part of that historical event.”
Couture, one of the great competitors in the sport’s history, has said his final fight will be at the biggest live event the company has ever produced, UFC 129 at the Rogers Centre in Toronto.
Couture will be in the familiar position of being a heavy underdog against a much-younger opponent when he faces former light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida before a sellout crowd of 55,000 fans.
More From Dave Meltzer
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The five-time former UFC champion insists the ability to retire on such a big stage was didn’t affect his decision to hang up the gloves.
“It really plays no factor in the decision I’ve made,” said Couture, who turns 48 in June. “It’s one that’s been coming for a while. I realize I’ve pushed it a lot further than anybody is going to push it and I just feel like I want to go out on my terms, and not after one or two or three losses and everybody else telling you that you should be retiring. I kind of want to do it when I want to do it. I think now is that time.”
Machida, the Brazilian-Japanese son of a karate master possesses a style that is almost impossible to figure out.
<TABLE border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>
</TD><TD vAlign=center>[SIZE=+1][ Order UFC 129: St. Pierre vs. Shields][/SIZE]
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>“They offered me a couple of other guys and I turned them down,” said Couture. “I’ve watched Lyoto for a couple of years now and am very appreciative of the way he competes. He just has such a unique style as an athlete. And I like that. Those are the kinds of fights that are intriguing and interesting for me.”
Couture (19-10) takes a three-fight winning streak into the bout against arguably the most all-around skilled opponent he’s faced. Machida (16-2) is a 13-to-4 favorite on the Las Vegas books and is 15 years younger than Couture.
But Machida has lost two straight and is coming off three consecutive lackluster performances, and is far from his unbeatable reputation of two years ago, when he won the light heavyweight title.
There are some who feel Machida, or at least the version of Machida that burst on the scene a few years ago, because of his unique style, would be the toughest opponent for current champion Jon Jones. But a loss here would likely mean it would be years, if ever, before he’d be challenging for a title.
Machida’s game is being difficult to catch. It’s based on quick movements forward and backward, quick and usually accurate strikes, and then getting out of trouble. But his controversial decision win over Mauricio “Shogun” Rua at UFC 104 ended his aura of invincibility. Then he was knocked out quickly in their rematch last year. His style again failed him against Quinton Jackson in his last fight. Machida was clearly the better fighter, but lost due to not being aggressive enough in the first two rounds, enabling Jackson to steal two of the three rounds on the scorecards.
Couture’s style is built on an aggressive clinch game. If Machida takes too long to find an opening, he could find himself on the wrong end of a decision. The key for Couture is whether he can close the distance, tie up Machida, and keep him in his world. But a perfect game plan will only work if Couture is also close to his physical peak.
Machida is the only fighter at UFC 129 who has competed in front of such a large crowd. His pro debut in 2003 was at the Tokyo Dome before 38,000 fans.
“He doesn’t feel that it’s an advantage,” said Machida through interpreter Ed Soares. “Because in the events that he fought in Japan that had 55-60,000 people, it’s a different type of crowd. They’re not as rowdy and as emotional as some of the American and Canadian fans are. So he doesn’t feel that will serve as any sort of advantage. I mean, this is an experience to walk into a stadium with 55,000 fans screaming. It’s going to be the same type of experience for him that it is for everybody else.”
Couture already had a storybook ending all but written for him with his Aug. 28 win over James Toney. To the crowd, he represented UFC against boxing in what was more of a freak-show match than a serious competition.
But Couture’s three-fight win streak isn’t all that impressive when you size them up with Machida. Couture’s win over Brandon Vera, where Vera played his game, was one in which the decision still could have gone either way. And Vera is not at Machida’s level as a fighter. Couture ran through Mark Coleman, a fighter from his own generation, but one not nearly as well-preserved. And Toney, a boxing champion who showed up far from his best, only possessed one threat, which was landing a big punch before the almost-inevitable takedown, and that didn’t happen.
But Couture said it’s not about going out with a “W.”
“Win, lose or draw, it doesn’t really factor into the equation,” he said. “It’s about where I’m at in my life. I’ve been doing this for a long time. It’s about the journey. It’s about the performance. As long as I go in there and have a good performance, I will be satisfied.”
Couture had avoided specific retirement announcements while giving hints almost every time asked, because he retired once in 2006, returned, and won the heavyweight title the following year.
He said he doesn’t want to be like Brett Favre, who continually retired and returned. But Couture noted this is a very different decision from the first time around.
“Lots of different circumstances regarded me stepping out back out there coming off of a divorce, just a lot of things stacked up and I needed the break. I needed to kind of let the dust settle, to get back to feeling like me, and get back to training and all of those other things back then. A lot of different circumstances now. I’m perfectly content and happy in my life. Things are going fantastic. In fact, they couldn’t be going any better.”
Couture’s career has spanned several different eras in a rapidly changing sport. And unlike most single-disciplined athletes who came into it with the mentality of proving their style was superior, Couture developed into learning every style. While his core game is still wrestling, he was susceptible to submissions when he started. But he hasn’t been caught in a submission in a decade. And remarkably, he probably peaked as a fighter at 43, when he outboxed heavy-hitter Gabriel Gonzaga and 6-feet-8 striker Tim Sylvia in his final title reign.
Couture was recruited into UFC in 1997 as what was believed to have been a slightly past-his–prime Greco-Roman wrestling specialist in the days of style vs. style. Since then, Couture set a slew of company records including most championship reigns (five) and most championship fights (15), and has been one of the building blocks of the promotion. He started out right as the company was facing political pressures that took it from its first peak levels in 1995-96, to its darkest days. After he won his first heavyweight title in 1997, there were few places MMA was even allowed to be held, and now it’s staged in major arenas around the world.
“Well, it’s certainly exciting to be involved in a card like this with the guys that are on this card and have it be before a crowd of 55,000 or more and kind of set a new attendance record,” he said. “The first fight in the province of Ontario, and there’s a lot of firsts here. So it’s certainly fun for me to be part of that whole thing and part of that historical event.”
