Mixed Martial Arts: Randy Couture ready to meet Brock Lesnar

BY ROBERT PRZYBYLO

Published: November 7, 2008

Randy Couture has been through this before. The long layoff, the surprising return and the dramatic victory — nothing is new to Couture. He’s looking for a little déjà vu when he battles Brock Lesnar for the Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight title Nov. 15 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas at UFC 91.

Randy Couture

Advertisement

It appeared Couture was done with the UFC after successfully defending the title against rising contender Gabriel Gonzaga in August of 2007.

A contract dispute with UFC President Dana White has had Couture, 45, on the shelf for the last year. But not only is Couture back, he’s going to return against arguably the best heavyweight the UFC has to offer.

"It’s hard to find guys (for training) who can simulate people like Brock,” Couture said on a conference call Thursday. "I’ve wrestled plenty of guys who are Brock’s size in college and international matches. My last couple of fights have been against big guys.”

But none as big as Lesnar, who will weigh at least 70 pounds more than Couture. Couture said he has no plans to add more weight and will walk in at a comfortable 225 pounds.

But Couture has defied the odds before. The former three-time All-American at Oklahoma State had a 13-month layoff before his bout with Tim Sylvia for the UFC heavyweight title in 2007. It didn’t matter as Couture won a unanimous decision to become a six-time UFC champion.

"I may not have fought in a cage recently, but I’ve been real active with the athletes at Extreme Couture. I like to train. I don’t like to sit around. Rust won’t be an issue.”

For more news and notes from the conference call, read Boneman’s Bout Blog at http://blog.newsok.com/boneman

Your thoughts!