Randy Couture Non-Settlement
by Michael Rome on Aug 28, 2008 8:11 PM EDT
in MMA News
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PrintMMA Junkie has a story on the possible return of Randy Couture to the UFC. It claims that sources close to Couture say he is willing to fight once more as a way of resolving the legal dispute:
Reigning UFC heavyweight champion Randy Couture could return to the Ultimate Fighting Championship by year's end as part of an out-of-court settlement with the organization.
Multiple sources close to the fighter, speaking exclusively to MMAjunkie.com, today said that Couture is willing to fight once more for the UFC, possibly before the end of the year, as a potential resolution to his ongoing legal battles with the fight promotion.
Unfortunately, this is unlikely to be any more successful than it was last time he tried. According to a source very close to both parties, this isn't the first time the settlement offer has been made. In June, when the UFC was desperate for a London main event replacement for Chuck Liddell, Randy Couture supposedly made an offer to fight Nogueira if he would be allowed to leave and fight elsewhere immediately after. The UFC turned it down. I don't believe they are any more likely to accept the settlement now, especially with an arbitration decision about to be handed down.
I do expect Randy will return eventually, maybe even by the end of this year or early next year, but I find it highly unlikely it will be under these terms. The deal makes no sense for the UFC.
Rumors of a Couture return in November have circulated for days on message boards, and there may be something to them. I have my doubts though.
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Not going to Happen
That just makes no sence at all for the UFC. Why take Randy back put him in the public eye again then have him go sign with Affliction right after.If we see Randy back that means he is atleast there for 3 or 4 fights no way they take him back for 1 thats just bad business and the UFC does not do bad business.
I don’t think it’s that bad of business. They only have him for 2 more fights anyway. He wants to leave and fight Fedor; they want him to fulfill the two fights. Yes, it is a contract and should be upheld but there’s always the “not getting any Randy fights” thing out there. Plus, if Randy loses to Nogueira, they basically shit on the Fedor-Couture matchup and ruin Afflictions potential business. And who knows what Fedor’s contract is like with Affliction. They might be able to just snatch him up magically. Also, whose to say Affliction will make it past their second PPV debut.
All in all I think the positives to this outweigh the negatives. Best possible outcome for all parties.
They have him for 2 fights and a year from the champions clause if he is still champion.
by Michael Rome on Aug 28, 2008 11:16 PM EDT up reply actions
They would rather drag this out in court and take there chances winning like most leagal experts think they will. You would rather make him spend his time out of the publics eye in court then to come back for one fight and then move onto another comapny. It makes no business sence what soi ever they are building him for a rival what it pretty much comes down to and for Affliction to put on the Fedor fight.But if he looses the court case he is theres for 2 more fights which they can spread and drag out over almost a 2 year period of time !!!!
Im hearing worst case for Zuffa is they can keep him from fighting anywhere until at least 2010…
If Randy never fights again it does nothing to Zuffa… however if Randy never fights again it will hurt him big time.
So obviously this cockamamie deal makes no sense for Zuffa and Zuffa will not accept anything less than their terms.
This is like a guy that has a house worth millions trying to sell it for the past year and now realizing he’s not the listed owner on the title…
And now realizing this he’s telling the actual owner that he will let him sleep in the house for one night and in return he (Randy) will take over ownership of the title.
You’d laugh in his face right?
Randy’s got only 2 real choices:
End his career in the UFC or end his career…
and something tells me his babe needs a new pair of shoes!
He’s sitting on an offer right now where he would main event ufc 91 and continue his career in the UFC… It’s time he smartens up and really thinks about it.
I think this will happen. He will return, get a little more money than before, and finish his career in the UFC.
by Michael Rome on Aug 28, 2008 11:17 PM EDT up reply actions
It certainly seems like that will be the case. Randy basically screwed himself over, costing him a year of what’s left of his fighting career. I’m sure he sees that there’s no way he’s gonna win this court battle. The UFC owns his ass, especially if he does come back to beat Nog and stay the champ. If the UFC doesn’t get Fedor, then Randy will be in a wheelchair by the time he gets to fight him. Personally, I’m kind of tired of hearing about it, and I’ve pretty much lost my desire to see those two fight. However, I’m sure if they announced the fight, I’d probably change my tune.
If he did fight again in the UFC, it would not be anytime soon. They would put Randy vs the winner of Nog/Mir which isn’t happening till Dec 27th. Only way they would do that is if Randy agreed to a long-term contract which he won’t. Like previous commentors have said, there is absolutely nothing in for the UFC and Randy trying to fight the UFC in court is just draining his bank account.
Would Randy want that fight? That would be a good move for the UFC if Randy loses. It would squash all this Randy/Fedor talk.
Right now Randy v Brock would do as well if not better than Randy v Fedor.
The UFC wins either way no matter who takes it.
A unification match would happen with the winner of nog-mir… thus 2 paydays.
obviously the deal locks coutures career in the UFC… However thats not so different than the terms in the contract he signed.
Randy/Brock would do twice the business of...
Randy/Fedor. Where are you hearing this deal has been offered?
Contributing Editor - BloodyElbow.com - SBNation's mixed martial arts headquarters.
by Brent Brookhouse on Aug 28, 2008 10:07 PM EDT up reply actions
Randy v Brock not only would outdo randy v fedor but also randy v nog… who everyones crying about.
We’re talking 2 potential mega fights no matter who wins.
We can safely assume nog will win and by that time he will have become a stronger pull.
nog v randy or nog v brock – win/win for zuffa daddyo.
The offer is not on any website… this story wasn’t even supposed to be out. The only reason I’m talking about it is because someone already leaked part of it.
I believe sherdog or one of those other clown sites was supposed to have the scoop from Randy’s end.
Last I heard he’s about 95% going to sign.
Rome’s analysis is spot on here The mmajunkie story is a joke.
By the way when I say the offer is in front of Randy… I mean the offer to main event 91 is in front of him with the probably opponent being Brock.
And it’s not this pie in the sky one fight, commercial for your bout with fedor at affliction, and youre free deal….
Its the standard Zuffa terms with extra vices for his nuts in case he gets out of hand again or the wifey gets PMS again.
I think Randy actually considering another fight with the UFC is waiving a white flag and telling the UFC the ball is in their court.
I haven’t seen anything resembling reliable about the Lesnar part though.
Apparently someone on the UG who has broken stuff before said that Randy might fight at 91. Then other websites came out with Randy’s offer to fight once and walk away, but I have not seen anything besides a post on sherdog as a source for the Randy/Brock fight.
Big Nog would be the obvious fight. Because he is the interim champion he rightfully should get Randy first. Yet I would personally like to see Lesner vs Couture just as much. Randy has always struggled with big powerful wrestlers and that’s just what Brock is. In fact he’s about the biggest. Fedor has expressed an intrest in fighting Lesner as well. Having Lesner do the fight would make future sense. Fedor won’t about fighting Big Nog again, but Brock after he (if) handles Randy is a different story. Either way we get a Fedor contender, where as if Big Nog wins there’s no real match out of it for Fedor. I’m rooting for two fights and a challenger to the throne.
That fight makes me squeamish.
Which probably means I would absolutely love the fight. If Lesnar were to take down Couture, it would kill three birds with one stone for Dana.
1. Promote Lesnar and establish his legitimacy
2. Dethrone Randy, freeing up the path for the up-and-comers in the division.
3. Destroy the potential Superfight between Fedor and Randy. At least cripple it’s ability to lend credence to a rival organization.
There is no such thing as innocence, only degrees of guilt.
I don’t think #3 needs to be worried about. I agree with mmalogic in that if Randy comes back, he’s coming back with his nuts in a vice.
The MMAJunkie article screams of PR maneuvering. Randy’s trying to make it look like he isn’t totally screwed and is actively negotiating, when in reality Zuffa is just sitting on their ass waiting for Randy to fold his seven high in the face of their full house.
by Michaelthebox on Aug 29, 2008 3:44 AM EDT up reply actions
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