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He's been doing this for 13 years.

Randall "Randy" Duane Couture (born June 22, 1963 in Everett, Washington) is a retired UFC fighter and former 5-time champion in two different weight classes, and one of the most recognizable stars of mixed martial arts. Starting his MMA career relatively late, Couture moved to MMA from Greco-Roman wrestling after thrice being an olympic alternate, but never making the competition team. Couture is a legend in the young sport, known for overcoming long odds and having the strength and athleticism of a much younger man well into his 40s.

He has tried to break into acting with mixed success. Although he had a co-starring role in a sequel to The Scorpion King, his best known role is as Toll Road in The Expendables. His acting is...rudimentary at best, but Randy Couture does a great fight scene. Besides film and television, Couture also appeared in the 2008 real-time strategy video game Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 as Commander Warren Fuller, playing alongside fellow MMA veteran Gina Carano who portrayed the Soviet commando Natasha Volkova.

Though his last title fight was against Brock Lesnar in November of 2008, Couture remained an active competitor and dangerous foe in the UFC until his retirement in April of 2011 at the age of 47.

Fight record, wikipedia page, IMDB bio and film credits.


Tropes associated with Randy "The Natural" Couture include:

  • All-American Face: Randy is often called Captain America by fans.
  • Cool Old Guy: Came into his MMA career later than the average fighter at the age of 34 and among his feats include being the oldest fighter to become a champion in UFC at 43, and the oldest fighter to win a bout in UFC history at 47.
  • Curb-Stomp Battle: His second fight against Pedro Rizzo, his 1st and 3rd fights against Vitor Belfortnote , his first fight with Chuck Liddell, the un-retirement fight against Tim Sylvia, the title defense against Gabriel "Napao" Gonzaga, and the fight against James Toney. More impressive considering he was the underdog in most of these fights.
  • Defeating the Undefeatable: Basically the reason the man is a legend in MMA with a 19-11 record. Couture has been counted out due to age since the very beginning of his career (at the tender age of 33), often before the fight even began.
  • Defictionalization: Randy was unfortunately on the receiving end to KO to end his career. At UFC 129, Lyoto Machida busted out an actual, factual, The Karate Kid Crane Kick to send the legend into retirement
  • Genius Bruiser: His accolades include a degree in German from Oklahoma State University.
  • Good Old Fisticuffs: Couture specializes in clinch-fighting, using dirty boxing and his Greco-Roman wrestling base to grind his opponents down. It's not flashy, but it gets the job done.
  • The Mentor: Randy runs Xtreme Couture, a high-level MMA gym that has coached a number of champions and title contenders.
  • Red Baron: "The Natural", "Kanaami no Tetsujin" ("Iron Man of The Cage").
  • Took a Level in Badass: According to Dave Meltzer, Couture was choked out by World Championship Wrestling pro wrestler Robbie Rage in 1997. From then, you can tell he took seriously his training.
  • Worthy Opponent: Chuck Liddell, together they created one of the most memorable trilogies in the history of MMA. Chuck won twice, after losing in the first fight.

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