Hey fighting gurus.....educate me.

[biglouie250]

why is randy couture so highly regarded in the UFC? Why is he a hall of famer? He is 14-8 since 1997, hardly a dominant record. He wasnt a founding father of the UFC in the way gracie, shamrock or dan the beast was..... i just dont understand the love affair between the ufc and couture. this is in no way meant to be disrespectful i just dont get it. IMHO his amateur wresting career and being a member our armed forces impress me more then his UFC exploits. please explain it to me.

[Hunter]

It is who he beat. He has always conducted himself with class and diginity. Also he has helped out younger fighters. His never say die attitude, plus he only lost pretty much to the best.

Wins
Pedro rizzo(twice)
Chuck Liddell
Maurice smith
Tito ortiz
Belfort (twice) beat him the first time when people thought he was unbeatable.
Jeremy horn
Tk
Kevin Randlemen
MVA

He lost early on due to a lack of submission defense. He lost to barnett and Ricco(two of the best heavyweights at that time, barnett still being one of the best) becouse he was to small. He dropped down a weight class and dominated three top fighters. He got cut seconds into his 2nd fight with belfort he really should be 14-1-7. Also two losses to a prime liddell subtract those. The loss against belfort should have been a no contest. Couture is a hero and insperation to almost everyone in mma.

[uponone23]

Lets see... Off the top of my head... He is the only man in history to hold both the Heavyweight and Light Heavyweight belts in any mixed martial arts organization... And he is one of the first fighters that started his career one dimensional and ended it as one of the elite fighters versed in many forms. And he kicked chuck liddells ass when he was over 40... I hope I am half the bad ass he is when I am 40 years old. I'm sure someone else is going to chime in with some more useful items that I left out also bro. Not a dumb question though you never know till you ask.

[Quil]

I would add that I believe he was the first and only UFC fighter to hold belts in two different weight classes (not at the same time), HW and LHW. Gracious in both victory and defeat, he actually strapped the belt on Barnett when Barnett beat him. Just an all around class act.

[Quil]

Uponone, you beat me to it on the weight classes

[biglouie250]

I would add that I believe he was the first and only UFC fighter to hold belts in two different weight classes (not at the same time), HW and LHW. Gracious in both victory and defeat, he actually strapped the belt on Barnett when Barnett beat him. Just an all around class act.

was there sufficient competition in the UFC to warrant this being a big deal? could he have done this in pride in your opinion?

[biglouie250]

Wins
Pedro rizzo(twice)
Chuck Liddell
Maurice smith
Tito ortiz
Belfort (twice) beat him the first time when people thought he was unbeatable.
Jeremy horn
Tk
Kevin Randlemen
MVA

rizzo, smith and vitor dont seem to impress me much either tho.

[Standard01]

You must've not followed the sport for too long. Rizzo, Smith, and Vitor were at the top of the food chain at that time. Those three victories are very impressive and then he drops to 205 and beats Chuck, Tito, and Vitor again. From 99-04 he was one of the best fighters in the world hands down. I'd say he's definitely top 10 of all time.

[rooster101]

im not even going to comment on this thread.

[Hunter]

rizzo, smith and vitor dont seem to impress me much either tho.

Well that explains why you dont appreciate couture. Go watch Rizzo when he was in his prime, watch smith when he was in his prime. Also When he beat vitor the first time vitor was the phenom. Couture is a class act and an incredible mma fighter. The first wrestler to really cross train. You need to follow mma more closely i you are not impressed with rizzo or smith esp when they were in there prime.

[Hunter]

Couture would have done well in pride, simply he matches up great against alot of there fighters esp when he was in his prime. Silva shogun would have been good fights but like lil nog. would have spent the entire fight on his back, Arona on his back, Overeem gas out. Plus he could have thrown knees to the head on the ground which would have benifited him. Couture was incredible he would have done well in pride.

[Standard01]

Couture would have done well in pride, simply he matches up great against alot of there fighters esp when he was in his prime. Silva shogun would have been good fights but like lil nog. would have spent the entire fight on his back, Arona on his back, Overeem gas out. Plus he could have thrown knees to the head on the ground which would have benifited him. Couture was incredible he would have done well in pride.

I don't think Arona would've been on his back.

[Hunter]

I don't think Arona would've been on his back.

Arona struggled to take tito down in adcc, couture embarrased tito wrestling. Couture would put arona on his back. Arona is a good wrestler for being a bjj pracitioner. Couture is just a great wrestler period.

[Standard01]

Arona struggled to take tito down in adcc, couture embarrased tito wrestling. Couture would put arona on his back. Arona is a good wrestler for being a bjj pracitioner. Couture is just a great wrestler period.

Tough to say, in adcc it is harder to take someone down without the element of striking or a cage. Couture is the more technical wrestler, but Arona is faster and stronger. It would be fun to watch, thats for sure.

[Hunter]

Tough to say, in adcc it is harder to take someone down without the element of striking or a cage. Couture is the more technical wrestler, but Arona is faster and stronger. It would be fun to watch, thats for sure.

I would not even say arona is stronger, faster for sure. But Greco wrestling builds such strength. I was a greco wreslter my entire life and its just a strength you gain. I think couture would embarrass him badly wrestling. Couture managed to survive agaist jacre(sp) and keep top position, but your right either way it would be a hell of a fight

[KAEW44]

Randy was amazing when he was a Heavyweight, but his true amazing feat was stepping down to LHW as an underdog against the number one contender Chuck Liddel at the time and cleaning out Chuck/Tito/Vitor in a row!! That made me a fan forever! Plus his conduct is of a true respectful sportsman.

[biglouie250]

how come he only fought 22 times in 8 years?

[zodiac666]

how come he only fought 22 times in 8 years?

almost once every 4 months, not that bad. why do you dislike randy so much?

[sonar1234]

Randy Couture is a class act and a great sponsor for MMA. He still competes and loves the sport.

I dont care about is record he could be 0-20 and i would still be a fan of is.

Enough said.

[uponone23]

how come he only fought 22 times in 8 years?

Because once you get to the top you are not fighting at bars or local convention centers. You spending 8 weeks plus preparing for an oponent who is going to be VERY dangerous. You don't get to that level and not be dangerous.
Then their is cool down time for the promoters and time for them to set up a new fight get all the paperwork done... Which takes time because no big names are gonna want to jump in with you unless they have something to prove.

[Hunter]

Because once you get to the top you are not fighting at bars or local convention centers. You spending 8 weeks plus preparing for an oponent who is going to be VERY dangerous. You don't get to that level and not be dangerous.
Then their is cool down time for the promoters and time for them to set up a new fight get all the paperwork done... Which takes time because no big names are gonna want to jump in with you unless they have something to prove.

Love that becouse well I fight at convention centers, and I laugh me ass off every time I look into the audience. Its like 1000 mullets ready to go

[uponone23]

Sorry lol i get carried away sometimes. And yes those of us who compete have all been there. My favorite place was called the cage in new orleans. It was the ultimate in red neck games competition. lol

[uponone23]

Love that becouse well I fight at convention centers, and I laugh me ass off every time I look into the audience. Its like 1000 mullets ready to go

Mullets: Business in the front.... YEE HAW in the back.

[sonar1234]

What wrong with a MULLET?

[uponone23]

What wrong with a MULLET?

It should be a crime for a male living in the United States to have a mullet. IMO... Now if you are Canadian I can make exceptions. Or maybe if you own an 80's model Camaro.

[zimmy]

Randy was amazing when he was a Heavyweight, but his true amazing feat was stepping down to LHW as an underdog against the number one contender Chuck Liddel at the time and cleaning out Chuck/Tito/Vitor in a row!! That made me a fan forever! Plus his conduct is of a true respectful sportsman.

exactly. Owning a weight and deciding to change weight for a challenge instead of sitting there like other fighters have... that takes real heart. And he so respectful and honorable. He is humble and never brags. And when he is announcing...he doesn't sit there and try to hear himself talk like most fighters (i.e. tito) He is what every fighter should be.

[sonar1234]

It should be a crime for a male living in the United States to have a mullet. IMO... Now if you are Canadian I can make exceptions. Or maybe if you own an 80's model Camaro.

LOL thanks good one i am Canadien and used to wrestle in a chruch basement back in 1996 til 2001 and most of the wrestler there had a mullet quit awful

[fbcoach]

Plus..Randy sort of connected the old style UFC to the modern UFC. He was one of the few that not only transitioned, but he also became Champion.