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RANDY COUTURE
Part 6
How Embarrassing
Page 2
- parts 6 - 10
© Marc Wickert
www.knucklepit.com
All photos copyright 2004 Zuffa LLC
Photography by Joshua Hedges Born June 22, 1963, Randy Couture, when he turned 35, he became one of UFC’s oldest competitors. Around that time experts started saying he wasn’t "getting any younger" – an intelligent observation in itself – and that he was doing surprisingly well to hang in there. They made it sound as though Couture was lucky to be winning his fights. On June 6, 2003, Randy put his hand up to challenge Chuck Liddell for the light-heavyweight interim title, after it appeared Tito Ortiz was dodging Chuck. People respected Couture for being game enough to step into the Octagon with Liddell - after all, "Randy was pushing 40". From the techno-theatrical introduction for the "Iceman" and the expert consensus, Chuck’s victory appeared to be a foregone conclusion. And despite Couture stopping Liddell in the third round, the "old boy" was once again the underdog at UFC 44 against the youthful Ortiz. And Randy showed he still had a bit of life left in him. After dominating the fight from start to finish, the father figure symbolically spanked his junior opponent in round five, before being handed a unanimous decision. By UFC 49: Unfinished Business, the non-believers were starting to believe. But they made allowances for "The Natural’s" recent successes by referring to him as "The Supernatural". However, some critics did question the older fighter’s ability to cope with the explosive hand speed of young Vitor Belfort. After Couture clearly won the first three rounds, the bout was pulled up. Not only had Randy convincingly defeated the three best light heavyweights UFC had to offer, but perhaps even more satisfying for Couture, he had totally embarrassed the sceptics. Then on April 16, 2005, Chuck Liddell did an incredible job of turning the tables on Randy, and KO’d Couture in the first round. Not surprisingly, the experts were back at full throttle, speculating that The Natural "is past it now". Also not surprising, Couture is back at work. "I’m in training, but the commission won’t let me spar or have any contact for thirty days. They want to eliminate my getting hit in the head during training after the knockout. I had a scan that night after the fight and everything was clear. There was no damage done. And I recovered pretty much immediately in the ring. It won’t be a problem," says Couture. Randy believes he was in the best shape of his life for their second meeting, but says Chuck was successful in changing the elements of his game that he felt needed improving. "He did a better job of using his jab and kind of sticking and staying away, and not standing and engaging, which created a vulnerability for him to be taken down the first time we fought. So he was staying away and pot shotting at me. "I think I’m the one who basically made a mistake. I changed tactics and got fired up after getting poked in the eye, and started chasing him a little too hard, instead of cutting him off like I did for the first minute-and-a-half of the fight. You know, he wasn’t going to be able to run for the whole fight like he was running for that first minute-and-a-half. But as soon as I started chasing him and trying to hit him, I created an opening, and he was good enough to capitalise on the opportunity. "It wasn’t like I was angry at him, but it did kinda change my attitude a little bit. I wasn’t terribly happy about getting poked in the eye, but I recovered. As you can see, I was fine, so it wasn’t really an issue. It kinda made me more determined at that point to get to him. I got to him and he kinda pushed off of my face and poked me in the eye to get away from me…I was basically over aggressive. I should have stayed relaxed and kept doing what I was doing. I would have gotten to him sooner or later. Instead I was over aggressive and more determined to get to him right then." Randy has always been like a great military battle-strategist: If something isn’t going right, he just goes back to the drawing board and fixes whatever needs fixing. For their next encounter, he will again make some adjustments to his battle plan. "A lot of what I was prepared to do was spot on. I didn’t really get a chance to test some of the ground stuff that I intended to use in the fight, so I’m going to continue refining those techniques and using them in training. I’m reasonably confident they will work against Chuck. Obviously I need to deal with my footwork and with cutting off a fighter who wants to stay away from me. And work on countering and being a little more methodical. "If I’ve had a fault in the past, it’s been that I have a tendency to be a little over aggressive as well. In the first Pedro (Rizzo) fight, that put me in trouble a few times. I‘ve been in those situations where I tend to be over aggressive. So continuing to learn and being a little more in control, I have to work on that."
Randy, through these battles, especially where you’re involved, MMA is just being taken to newer heights where it’s never been explored before, isn’t it? "I know, personally, I’m getting better all the time through constantly striving to compete at a higher level. I think the sport in general is certainly continuing to progress and evolve. All the fighters are constantly improving their conditioning, improving their techniques, and doing new things. So I, like a lot of the fighters in the game, have to keep up. "And I’ve been in this situation before where, ‘Oh, he’s forty-one and he got knocked out.’ They want to count me out, say I’m done, and that it’s over for me. That just makes it so much better when I come back." But that attitude is so dumb, isn’t it? What you’re doing, and at the level you’re fighting at, they should be grateful. You’re just showing people what they could be doing with their lives. You’re not just helping martial artists, you’re helping people in anything they’re doing in life. You’re such an inspiration. "I appreciate that, but they’re going to do what they’re going to do." There’s talk of a rematch with you and Chuck for January, 2006. "That’s what I’ve heard. It’s not official yet, but that date has been mentioned, and I think that will be great. Obviously sooner would be better for me, but I understand they want to build that up. Chuck and I will probably fight somebody else in the meantime, and I think it will be very good." Are you lined up for UFC 54 yet? "We’ve talked about it, but nothing is signed yet. We’re still trying to work on an opponent, and I think that the August show will probably be my next fight." I was going to ask who your next unlucky opponent is going to be. "Yeah. You kinda don’t want to be the next opponent after a loss. They’re speculating. Ken Shamrock’s name has come up. Babalu has been doing very well and looks good in the division. Or it could be somebody totally new. Who knows?" Randy, is there anything you’d like to add? "No, I don’t think so. I think you’ve got it covered." Your sponsors? "Sportsbook.com, Rockstar Energy Drink, HCK.com, 24 Hour Fitness, and Benchmade Knives."
For more on Randy Couture: www.randycouture.tv. For more on UFC: www.ufc.tv.
RANDY COUTURE
Part 7
Cleared, Licensed and Certified to
Cause Mayhem
© Marc Wickert
www.knucklepit.com
All photos copyright 2004 Zuffa LLC
Photography by Joshua Hedges
UFC’s former
Heavyweight and Light-Heavyweight Champion, Randy Couture, is poised
like a Condong cane-cutter’s machete at harvest time, and ready to
slash through anyone who stands in the way of his retrieving the
Light-Heavyweight Championship Title.
At UFC 54: Boiling Point, the man in Couture’s path will be the respected wrestler, Mike Van Arsdale (10-1), who defeated John Marsh at UFC 52. And Randy says his preparation for the upcoming bout is on schedule. "It’s been going really well. I had to take the mandatory 30 days off for the commission, but that wasn’t really that big a deal. And I’ve been cleared, licensed and certified to fight for August 20 against Mike. So I’m ready to go," says Couture. As well as Randy and Chuck Liddell competing against each other in April at UFC 52: Couture vs Liddell 2, they also coached the opposing teams for The Ultimate Fighter series. And Randy has no trouble picking the match that stands out in his mind from the live-to-air finale. "Oh, there’s no doubt: The Forrest Griffin vs Stephan Bonnar fight was one of the best fights I’ve ever seen. That was a fantastic battle. Those guys showed a lot of heart, brawled…And I don’t think you could have scripted a better fight for the first free-TV, UFC. It was great." Many fighters, such as Pat Miletich and John Hackleman, have said they find the experience of watching from ringside more harrowing than actually competing. In his role as a coach, Randy experienced this same emotion. "I was excited. I get a little more nervous watching the other guys fighting than I do when I’m fighting. But Griffin vs Bonnar was such a great fight. I was on my feet just about the whole time. It was awesome." And Randy agrees that training competitors from the series did bring back memories of a younger, greener Couture. "Yes, to some extent. Especially the guys I came across who had wrestling backgrounds. They were trying to put together their wrestling techniques and develop some fighting skills, so I definitely saw myself in them."
It seems this super-fit athlete fighting out of Oregon also has boundless energy outside the Octagon, and will be teaming up with Bas Rutten on July 23 and 24 to hold a training camp in Gastonia, North Carolina. Randy says he is looking forward to sharing seminars with the three-time King of Pancrase and two-time UFC Heavyweight Champion, Rutten. "The same person - Jeremy Lappen - manages us, and we have the same assistant - Shannon. Bas came up to Sport Fight and Team Quest, so we did some seminars and training together before the Liddell fight. And we just get along very well. Shannon put together some seminars that Bas and I work together, and I think it’s going to be great. "It will be geared towards any skill level, focusing on fundamental skills and philosophies for Mixed Martial Arts - incorporating submissions and striking. I think anybody would get something out of it, for sure. You’re going to see some wrestling flavour as it applies to Mixed Martial Arts. And Bas is obviously a great submission fighter and a very, very good striker. So you’re going to get that perspective from him. I think the two fit together pretty nicely. "I’ll be doing the Greco- and the takedown-wrestling, and making those transitions to fighting positions. Bas will be handling a lot more of the strikes - kicking and punching, and some of the submission stuff that he likes as well." Fight fans will also have the opportunity to witness Couture putting his techniques and experience into practise at UFC 54.
Randy, what will Mike Van Arsdale’s strategy be against you? "I think it’s pretty clear. He’s going to want to take me down, use his wrestling skills to put me on the ground and keep me there. He’s not a striker. He’s not a great submission guy. But he’s got great wrestling skills, and he’s a very good athlete. So I’m sure he’s going to try to set me up, take me down, put me on the ground and keep me there." But you’re at home on the ground, aren’t you? "Yeah, I think that will be fine. I don’t plan on spending a lot of rounds on my back. I’m going to scramble to find the ground, but to find it in the top position on the ground. So it should be good. I’ve been focusing a lot on my hands. I think it’s an area where I can dominate this fight – being sharp and letting my hands go. And fighting for every position in those takedown scrambles, and making him work real hard. "He really has nothing to lose in this fight. On paper, no one really expects him to come out and beat me. So he can just go out and compete. If he loses, everyone’s going to say, ‘Well, he lost.’ And if he wins, he looks great anyway, so… He doesn’t really have any pressure. He just has to do what he needs to do. I’m the one coming off a loss, so I’ve got to be sharp and get myself back on track to wear the belt again." How will you win this match? "I think, realistically, probably the same way I win a lot of them: I think I’ll find my way to the top position and I think he’s going to have a lot of trouble getting back up." So the ground’n’pound? "More than likely, yeah." And can Jeremy Horn stop Chuck in their bout? "I think he can. I think Chuck’s got his hands full with Jeremy. He’s a very experienced competitor. He’s got over 100 fights. He stopped Chuck once before. I think Jeremy’s stand-up game has improved immensely since I fought him years ago. He’s always been dangerous on the ground, and I think he’s taking this seriously. He’s in the best shape that I’ve seen him in, and I hope that Chuck is taking him seriously and comes prepared for a battle." Will you be fighting Jeremy Horn? "Well, if he wins, I’ll be looking to fight Jeremy Horn. Whoever’s wearing that belt is the next guy I want to step in there with. Obviously, from a marketing perspective it would be a much bigger fight against Chuck, but that’s not really my issue." Do you still have the same sponsors? "Sportsbook.com, Rockstar Energy Drink, HCK.com, 24 Hour Fitness, and Benchmade Knives.
For more on Randy Couture and his seminars with Bas Rutten: www.randycouture.tv For more on UFC 54: Boiling Point: www.ufc.tv
The Natural Enjoys Sake Between Workouts!
© Marc Wickert All photos copyright
2004 Zuffa LLC It’s gone noon on Friday, January 21, 2006, and Randy Couture is relaxing after his first workout of the day – just two weeks before the biggest fight in UFC history is scheduled to take place. On February 4, UFC’s former light-heavyweight champion, Randy, and reigning light-heavyweight champion, Chuck Liddell, will face off for Liddell vs Couture III. And while fans bought out tickets for this showdown at MGM in a record time of under a week, no one is as keen for the show to come around as Randy. "Oh, man, I can’t wait. It can’t get here quick enough," says Couture. During the break between gym sessions, Randy took time to talk about this upcoming historic battle. "I’m in Las Vegas. I live here now and I’m into a couple of weeks’ training. [Barking in the background]. I’m winding down and getting ready to go. I haven’t lived in Oregon for 10 months." The thing that really stands out with Randy ‘The Natural’ Couture and Chuck ‘The Iceman’ Liddell is the way they are so natural and cool leading up to the most anticipated event in mixed martial arts history. The level of professionalism from both modern-day gladiators is undeniable. "I just got home from having lunch with Andrei Arlovski. He’s been here all week, working out with me. I’m just kinda relaxing and getting ready to go again tonight at about 8.30. I’m sitting down and relaxing with my daughter and girlfriend. [More demanding barking in the background]. "I’ve got a little puppy here and I’m playing with him. He’s a little Japanese dog called a shiba inu – a very interesting dog. I’d never heard of them before, but my girlfriend found him and fell in love with him. We picked him up for her for Christmas. A very smart dog and he looks like a miniature Akita. His name is Sake. He’s got a curly tail and he’s all white." For these elite athletes, so much of a fight’s outcome is determined by their preparation leading up to a battle, and Randy is confident his game is on track. "It’s fantastic. I’ve had a great few weeks’ training camp up at Colorado, working in the thin air of the Rockies with some good partners, doing some good workouts up there. I got back last weekend and I’ve been finishing up my last nine or ten days of preparation here in Vegas. "Andrei Arlovski came into town so that was a nice treat. He’s going to come back next week and help me some more, so it’s been good to work out with him. He’s a great big guy. It’s kinda nice to not be the biggest guy in the gym for a change. We’re just putting the finishing touches on it…feeling fantastic, and ready to go." Most MMA enthusiasts are assuming Randy will want to take the fight straight to the ground, and that Chuck will want to keep it standing. But in Couture’s first meeting with Liddell, Randy agrees he out-scored Chuck in the toe-to-toe confrontation. "Yeah, that’s kinda the way it ended up going, and I put him on the ground as often as I could. But I think you’ve got to be willing to engage a guy on his feet to get him to open up, before you’re going to be able to take him down. So I don’t expect it to be any different this time. I’ve got to be prepared to engage Chuck on his feet – make him swing at me, make him punch – and through that, the opportunities to take him down will come." Randy concedes a ground scenario would not only work in his favour, but would work against Chuck in the mind-games aspect of battle. "Well, I think psychologically it has an effect…picking him up and putting him on the ground…He doesn’t really want to be there. I certainly feel confident and strong on the ground. I feel I can make him work, and dominate the fight from that position."
Randy, have you been keeping a low profile leading up to this fight? "I haven’t been travelling too much – just pretty much knuckled down and gotten into training. I’ve given myself about 12 weeks’ preparation for this fight instead of the usual 10. And it’s been going really well. I had the luxury of working out at the UFC Training Center for the last two and a half months. And now this past week, the third season of The Ultimate Fighter has started filming, so I have to go elsewhere for the last two weeks of my title, but it’s been no problem. I’ve had great facilities and a great crew of guys, so it’s been very, very good." When you talk about the UFC Training Center, that’s not too public, is it? "No. It’s not open to the public at all. They were nice enough to give me a key to go and train whenever I want. There were no shows, so it was just sitting there empty, waiting for the third season to commence. It’s an awesome facility – full cage, boxing ring, mats, treadmills, weights…the whole deal. It’s a great place to train – especially when you have it all to yourself." And you don’t have to worry about your preparation being observed? "No. I’m never too worried about that. There are no secrets. I know, ultimately, what Chuck’s style of fighting is, and what he would like to do, within the realm of techniques. And he has an idea of what I’m going to try to do to him as well. There aren't any real secrets." In your matches against Pedro Rizzo (UFCs 31& 34) and Vitor Belfort (UFCs 46 & 49), your opponents suffered the consequences in the rematches. Do you expect this to be a similar deal for Chuck? "I feel confident that I’m prepared and that I’m as good a fighter as I’ve ever been right now. I know, going into our last meeting, I had some personal issues and distractions going on. It didn’t put me in the best of places for going out and competing. And I don’t make excuses: I was still prepared and I trained hard. I went out, made a technical mistake, and put myself in a position for Chuck to land a shot. "I don’t think it’s going to be the same this time. In fact, I dare him to try and knock me out again. If he tries to take my head off, it’s just going to make it that much easier for me to deal with him." Do you expect this fight to be a long one? "I don’t think so. It certainly could go that way, but in my opinion, Chuck’s never really been known for his conditioning and longevity. [Saki barks in agreement]. He tries to get you out there as early as he can. And the longer the fight goes, I think, the better it is for me. I expect if I impress my will upon Chuck, and make him work hard – take him down a few times, and get in his face and stay on him, I can wear him down. And hopefully by the third or fourth round, I can take him out. I’m prepared to go as long as I need to go." How are you going to win this fight – by ground’n’pound, then? "I think eventually that’s what it will come to. I plan to engage and put him on the ground as many times as I need to, until he’s tired of getting back up. And then it’s over." Will there be a Couture vs Liddell IV? "Oh, I doubt it. This kinda settles the score. A trilogy makes sense. I don’t know that a fourth one would ever make sense." I also asked Chuck this question: Will fight fans look back on the Couture vs Liddell trilogy in the same way as, say, the Ali vs Frazier classic battles? "Well, that would be nice. I think certainly in MMA you could make that jump, and equate it to that kind of rivalry, but those are pretty special guys, so to be thought of in the same sentence as those guys is pretty cool for me. I suppose in this world – obviously we haven’t gotten the recognition that Ali or Frazier had, but for our realm of fighting, Chuck and I have done pretty well for ourselves. We’ve tried real hard to represent our sport in a positive way. And we’ve kinda managed to pull that off, so…" Randy, is there anything you’d like to add? "Just a ‘hello’ to the fans. I hope everybody enjoys the fight. I think it’s going to be the biggest UFC ever. It’s shaping up that way. I don’t know how long it’s going to take to be aired Down Under – so you can all see it down there. But I have a lot of friends and fans in Australia as well. I hope everybody enjoys it, and I’m looking forward to getting out there and getting after it." Your sponsors? "Rockstar Energy Drink, HCK.com, Benchmade Knives, and Fizogen."
For more on UFC 57: www.ufc.tv.
RANDY COUTURE
PART 9
Retirement’s No Joke for The
Natural
© Marc Wickert
www.knucklepit.com
All photos copyright 2004 Zuffa LLC
Photography by Joshua Hedges It’s June 2, 2006, and Randy ‘The Natural’ Couture is taking time out from his many business calls to answer yet another phone for this interview. Fortunately, Randy has his offsider, a shiba inu, to share the burden. And how is Sake bearing up to the brunt of this massive workload? "He’s good. He’s seven months old and sitting right here, looking at me," says Couture from his home in Las Vegas. After UFC 57, Randy announced his retirement, but as with many retirees, this just signalled a time to crank things up a notch, rather than an opportunity to put the feet up. So what exactly has The Natural been doing since placing his MMA career in mothballs? "What haven’t I been doing? Holy moly, it’s crazy. It’s been good, though. At this rate, I think I’ll be praying for a ten-week training camp so I can just eat, sleep and train. I’ve been doing a lot of appearances, stuff for sponsors, and for the USO (United Service Organisation), working for the UFC… "And I’m probably going to be joining forces with Marc Ratner, working on the sanctioning process in all 50 states. The sport is currently sanctioned in twenty states, and we’d like to knock the other thirty states down – get everybody on the same page. Kinda close any loopholes for anybody who might want to throw on an unregulated show and get somebody hurt." Randy has also completed a TV commercial for Direct TV; done an episode of King of Queens with Kevin James; had a small acting part in a movie with Rob Schneider called Big Stan; and right now, he’s working as a coach on the fourth season of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF). Looking back on his third bout with Chuck Liddell, Couture says there is little he would have changed with his approach to the fight. "I think if I were going to change anything, I’d maybe be a little more aggressive. I think in the second fight, I was over-aggressive, and that’s what put me in trouble. Maybe I overcompensated in the third fight and could have been a little more aggressive, kept the pressure on, and attacked him just a little more. But other than that, I don’t believe there’s a whole lot you can change: Things happen the way they happen." Randy proved himself to be one of the most successful gladiators in UFC history – both in the heavyweight and light-heavyweight divisions, but at this stage, he does not intend coming out of retirement. "I don’t have any plans to. I’m pretty comfortable with my decision to retire. When I signed the contract for the third fight, I told them it was going to be my last fight – win or lose."
Randy, are you still training hard? "Yeah, I’m still training. It’s just been a little difficult with all the travel and stuff, but it’s been nice being involved with the fourth season of TUF. I train pretty much daily with the guys from the show, and it’s a good crew of guys, so it’s fun." What’s the story with the USO? "It’s inter-service related. It doesn’t matter which service they are from, they support all troops. Bob Hope was huge in the USO. He used to do concerts in Vietnam and all sorts of places. We’ve pretty much limited our appearances to stateside here, but they’re talking about sending us to Iraq or Afghanistan, doing shows for the soldiers that are stationed overseas." Will you be singing at those appearances? "Ahhh, I definitely won’t be singing at those appearances. If I do, it will be my last USO tour." Were you surprised with Tim Sylvia’s defeat of Andrei? "I don’t know if ‘surprised’ is the right word. Tim certainly possesses the ability to create that sort of outcome. By most people’s estimation, Andrei Arlovski was looking unstoppable. He was dismantling everybody…He’s a big, strong athlete…And it looked like things were still going to be going his way. He caught Tim with the overhand right again and hurt him. "To Tim’s credit, he popped right back up, and, I think, caught Andrei being a little over-aggressive. Probably because Tim had been talking so much trash, Andrei wanted to really hurt him. Tim’s a big, strong, long guy to land a shot, so… I don’t think you can ever count Tim out. He’s such a hard worker, that I think he’s always going to be in every fight." Would you say you couldn’t count Andrei out either? "Well I think we’re going to see that fight again in July. A lot of people are excited. Sure Tim’s the champ, but I think he’s going to be the underdog again, because an athlete like Andrei is a pretty rare thing. The guy’s 245 pounds, and to possess the ability that he has, plus speed, strength, and agility, he’s pretty impressive."
Can the techniques of MMA fighting continue to evolve, or have all the systems been swallowed up and refined? "I think there’s more to be learned. Although we continue to refine it, and stylise ourselves as fighters, things kinda seem to go in cycles. Guys find new angles and approaches, using some of the old tools, but they implement them in different ways and create trends. I think you’re seeing a trend in stand-up fighting right now, but I believe there are certainly still areas that can be refined. I think the Greco clinch-work with the Thai fighting is still fairly untapped. There are not a lot of guys using that to full advantage. I think you’ll see ground fighting and submissions come back to the forefront too, so I think we’re going to continue to evolve." How did your trip to Fort Bragg go? "It went really well. I went skydiving with the Golden Knights and 82nd Airborne. And got to go out to the range and shoot with the 7th Special Forces group – fired some weapons and shot a lot of rounds. It was a good couple of days." What sort of weapons did you use? "We shot the M-4 and .45 pistols." Did you show them up? "Ah, I held my own, but I don’t know if I showed anybody up. But I did alright." Randy, do you have training facilities that the public can train at? "Yeah, if they look up www.legendsmma.com, that’s my new training center in Los Angeles. We open in a couple of weeks – probably the last week in June." Randy is sponsored by Rockstar Energy Drink and Fizogen.
For more on Randy Couture, check out his new site at www.thenatural.tv.
RANDY
COUTURE “As Long as It’s Intriguing and Interesting, I’m All For It”
©
Marc Wickert All
photos copyright 2004 Zuffa LLC Randy
Couture is in LA at the time of this interview and will be here for the
next two days, before heading up to Portland, Oregon, to take care of
some business there for a few more days, and to see his four-year-old
son, Caden, who Randy says is apparently training for a bout with Cro-Cop.
Then he’s traveling back down to Vegas over the weekend for the WEC
show. Despite
being the only athlete to hold UFC titles in two different weight
divisions, Randy has now gone from heavyweight to light heavyweight, and
amazingly, back up to reclaiming the heavyweight crown after recently
defeating Tim Sylvia. “It
was a good night: Anytime when it all comes together like that… It
doesn’t happen all the time, but it sure was a blast,” says Couture
of his UFC 68 victory. Although a non-drinker, Randy has been know to
let his hair down after some of his biggest wins, but says he hasn’t
had time to toast his unanimous decision at The Uprising. “Not
yet, it’s been a whirlwind the last three weeks.” Along
with the accolades, Randy is also the recipient of many matchmaking
suggestions for his next bout, so it’s only natural that one would
expect The Natural to be deep into some serious training for
whoever his next game opponent might be. But when you’re as big a star
as Randy Couture, training doesn’t always come easy. “I’ve
been trying to train – I started back last week but it’s been a
hit-and-miss with the traveling and all that’s going on.” Fortunately,
when everything in life seems to be a little too crazy, Randy has one
stable influence on his hectic lifestyle: his canine counselor.
“Sake’s doing great – he’s awesome. He gets a little lonely when
we’re gone for too long and he’ll chew things up.” Just goes to
show: Even counselors need a little therapy from time to time. Randy,
do you think you got into Tim’s head before the fight? “I
don’t know if I got into his head before the fight, but I’m pretty
sure I got into his head with that first punch.” You have an ability to psyche out many of your opponents before fights start, such as Vitor Belfort, don’t you? “I certainly feel that was the case with Vitor, but I think that was residual… something from years ago when we first fought. With Tim, it’s possible because he’s an emotional fighter who tries to generate animosity between himself and his opponent, and obviously with our being friends, he couldn’t really do that. So that could have affected him a little bit. But Tim comes to fight, and more than anything, I think he didn’t know whether I was going to throw a punch or get a shoot.”
Was Jay Hieron behind the left leg-kick/overhand right tactic, or was it your own plan? “That
was a particular combination I worked on at a training camp with a Muay
Thai instructor, looking at the case with Tim where he stands real firm
on his lead foot, especially when he throws a jab; so I thought if I
timed it right and kicked his lead leg, it would open his legs and
unbalance him a little bit. And then I’d follow with the overhand
right and left hook. The first combination I threw, I didn’t get to
the left hook – he was already on his butt.” From the footage, it looked as though you were almost as stunned at the result of your attack as Tim was. “I
was absolutely shocked. I think I was about five feet away before it
registered what had happened, and I had to run over there. I think I was
as surprised as anybody in the stadium.” Did
you have to make many changes to your stand-up game for Tim? “Not
really; the biggest thing was getting a bunch of big partners who could
simulate Tim’s range and that weight difference, and I was fortunate
to get that done. I had Dan Christison, Frank Mir, Dan Evans, and Wes
Sims… all north of 270 and most of them over 6’5”. So it was a
good crew – they beat the snot out of me for the first couple of
weeks.” Were
you disappointed you couldn’t terminate the fight on the ground? “Well,
I was kinda surprised I wasn’t more effective there: Tim did a very
good job of defending himself on the ground, and he’s got a great camp
who prepared him well for that phase of the fight, and I don’t think
he expected me to be so effective on the feet. So it was a trade-off. In
hindsight, I was kinda happy it didn’t end in the first thirty seconds
– it would have left the question, was it a lucky punch? So to have it
go five rounds in fairly dominant fashion, I think, was a better way for
it to happen.” Tim seemed to have a lot of power in his thighs when fighting from his back. Was that the case? “Well
he’s so damn long, and in the guard, to get up there and reach his
head… I tried to work his body a lot, and I’d hoped to pass and get
a more effective body position. But even getting to the side – he’s
so big and you still feel precarious on the side where you’re a little
weary to get up and strike or do anything. But it’s the way the game
is, I guess.” When you were going for the rear naked choke and you were kicking Tim in the face, did you have a bit of a chuckle to yourself then? “When
I was punching him in the face?” No, you had his back, and he was grabbing your wrists, stopping you from applying the rear naked choke, and you kicked up into his face while you had his back. “With my foot? No, I don’t remember that.”
Have you looked at the replay? The toes of your right foot nearly go into Tim’s right eye. “Yeah, I watched it once, but I don’t remember my foot getting up there…Oh, I know what I was trying to do: I was trying to trap his arm with my leg so he wouldn’t have a free hand to tie up my wrists. I worked on that little technique with Dean Lister to kinda spur in and trap his arm to his side, but I could never really get up high enough to trap Tim’s arm.”
Will
there be a rematch? “Not
that I’ve heard: I don’t know why there would be. I’m not sure
what his contract reads, but I don’t expect I’ll be around long
enough to see that happen.” That sounds like Sean Connery: “Never say never again.” “Yeah.”
(laughs) What’s
next for you – Gabriel ‘Napao’ Gonzaga or Cro-Cop? “It
sounds like they’re going to wanna match me up with the winner of the
Gonzaga vs. Cro-Cop fight.” Is there any chance you and Chuck Liddell will be putting both belts on the line; winner take all? Or will you stay at heavyweight for the time being? “I’ve
not heard… Everybody keeps asking me about Chuck, and I don’t know
what Chuck wants to do, but I think he has his hands full in May with
Rampage Jackson. Let’s see what happens after that fight.” Everyone knows there’s no one you’d ever shy away from, but is there anything in particular that you would like to do? “See
what they present: As long as it’s intriguing and interesting, I’m
all for it.” Has
the actual training changed since you first stepped into the Octagon at
UFC 13? “I’ve
refined my training more, and I’ve learnt to rest more the week of the
fight. I’ve constantly tried to implement new training tools, and
refined the training habits to help me peak for competition. The changes
have been pretty subtle, but it is a constant learning process –
you’re constantly learning new skills and finding the best way to get
yourself in shape. “Like
now, I’m playing around a little bit with kettlebells as a replacement
for the weights circuits that I’ve been using. I don’t know if
it’s going to work or if it’s going to replace, or how I’ll feel
about that, but I’m employing that as another training method right
now – it’s an ever-changing process.” Randy
is there anything you’d like to add? “No,
I think you’ve covered everything.” Sponsors? “24-hour
Fitness, Volant, and Couture Nutrition.” Readers can check out Randy’s MMA gym, which is open to the general public, at www.xtremecouture.tv.
For
more on Randy Couture:
www.xtremecouture.tv. For
more on UFC:
www.ufc.tv.
Click
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