With the retirement of Randy Couture following his loss to Lyoto Machida this past Saturday at UFC 129 coupled with fellow UFC Hall of Famer Chuck Liddell hanging up his gloves recently, is there anyone on the UFC roster who could be viewed as the elder statesman. Is there a fighter who the UFC can bank on to help them out of a desperate situation whether or not it benefits them personally the way Liddell and Couture did on so many occasions?
It’s very rare that an organization has a fighter who is willing to put the needs of their employer before their very own the way Couture has. When they needed a main event for UFC 105 they called on Couture to take on the much younger Brandon Vera. When Tito Ortiz bailed out of his bout with Mark Coleman, Couture stepped in despite having nothing to gain personally. When James Toney ran his mouth and belittled the sport who came through to shut the boxers mouth and prove just how different the two sports truly are?
There aren’t many fighters around today who could ever dream of becoming the icon Couture is. What is most important though is whether or not there is somebody who can be a true ambassador for the sport and follow the example “The Natural” has set during his illustrious career.