UFC icon Randy Couture reveals agony of first fight with Pedro Rizzo: ‘I couldn’t walk right for six weeks’

Randy Couture reveals gnarly aftermath of fight with UFC rival Pedro Rizzo I couldn't walk for 6 weeksFormer UFC champion Randy Couture reveals his hardest fight through his legendary career.  Couture debuted in May of 1997…

Randy Couture reveals gnarly aftermath of fight with UFC rival Pedro Rizzo I couldn't walk for 6 weeks

Former UFC champion Randy Couture reveals his hardest fight through his legendary career. 

Couture debuted in May of 1997 at UFC 13, submitting Tony Halme in just 56 seconds. He would then stop Steven Graham in a little over three minutes to claim his second victory as a professional the very same night. 

Randy Couture
Mandatory Credit: Michael Tran/FilmMagic

Couture would compete all the way up till 2011 and became UFC champion six times across light-heavyweight and heavyweight. Randy Couture would fight the very best the sport had to offer during this time including the like of Chuck Liddell, Brock Lesner and Tito Ortiz. 

While ‘The Natural’ would fight, and win, against several former champions throughout his career, Randy Couture labelled ‘The Rock’ as his toughest test. 

Randy Couture vs. Pedro Rizzo 1

Pedro Rizzo never quite reached the very peak of the sport but the Brazilian would challenge for the UFC title on three occasions. He also holds wins over the likes of Josh Barnett and Mark Coleman.

Randy Couture reveals his toughest ever fight

Couture and Rizzo fought twice with Couture taking the victory in both but declared the first as his hardest ever fight.

“The toughest fight was the first time I fought Pedro Rizzo,” Randy Couture told TalkSPORT’s MMA YouTube Channel during an interview with Jordan Ellis.

“It was a brawl. A back-and-forth five-round battle. I won three of the five rounds, but I broke my nose and got kicked in the leg about 14 times in that fight.

“I didn’t walk right for six weeks after that fight, that was a very tough fight.”

Randy Couture

Couture has been competing for four years prior to their first fight but chose the first fight of he and Rizzo’s fight to be the first one his mother attended. 

“That was the first fight my mum attended in person,” Couture said. “That one always sticks out to me as one of the toughest fights I’ve been in.”

What is your favourite moment from Rady Couture’s career?

Former UFC Heavyweight: Daniel Cormier Is A Bad Matchup For Francis Ngannou

Cormie NgannouFormer UFC heavyweight Pedro Rizzo believes Daniel Cormier would be a bad matchup for Francis Ngannou. Ngannou recently became the new heavyweight champion following an impressive second-round knockout win over Stipe Miocic at UFC 260 late last month. That in itself was a surprising result for Rizzo. “I have to admit that I was expecting […]

Cormie Ngannou

Former UFC heavyweight Pedro Rizzo believes Daniel Cormier would be a bad matchup for Francis Ngannou.

Ngannou recently became the new heavyweight champion following an impressive second-round knockout win over Stipe Miocic at UFC 260 late last month.

That in itself was a surprising result for Rizzo.

“I have to admit that I was expecting [Stipe] Miocic to keep the title,” Rizzo told Sherdog. “I thought he would take more risks in order to get [Francis] Ngannou in the groundm but he didn’t.

“Of course Francis deserves all the credit, but I still see Miocic as a more well-rounded fighter and if he used a less predictable strategy, he would have kept the belt.”

The attention now has been entirely on Jon Jones and whether he will end up facing Ngannou next.

And while the jury is out as to whether Jones is genuinely asking for more pay or is just scared of Ngannou, Rizzo believes the former’s heated rival in Cormier would be a bad matchup for the latter.

“Jones used to have problems with fighters of similar range, as we could see against [Alexander] Gustafsson and [Dominick] Reyes. Even gaining some weight, he is not a natural heavyweight with one-punch knockout power,” Rizzo explained. “I truly believe that if Daniel Cormier is able to get in shape again, he would be the worst matchup for Ngannou.

“Good examples of that are his fight against Derrick Lewis and both against Anthony Johnson, two beasts with impressive knockout power, and neither could stay on their feet for too long against DC. Cormier just doesn’t accept the standup fight, that´s why I believe he would be such a bad matchup for Ngannou.”

Of course, Cormier is happily retired now following his trilogy defeat to Miocic at UFC 252 in August last year. However, it’s hard to argue against his chances.

What do you think?

MMA’s 10 Hardest Hitters According To The Fighters

When it comes to establishing who MMA’s all-time hardest hitters are, nobody is better placed to make the call than the fighters who have had the misfortune to experience that punching power firsthand. With that in mind, in this article, we’ll be going beyond just the facts and figures about who hits the hardest by […]

The post MMA’s 10 Hardest Hitters According To The Fighters appeared first on LowKickMMA.com.

When it comes to establishing who MMA’s all-time hardest hitters are, nobody is better placed to make the call than the fighters who have had the misfortune to experience that punching power firsthand.

With that in mind, in this article, we’ll be going beyond just the facts and figures about who hits the hardest by taking on board the opinions of some of mixed martial arts biggest stars as they reveal from personal experience who has the heaviest hands in the sport.

Check out the 10 hardest-hitting fighters in MMA according to the fighters themselves.

Wanderlei Silva

In his heyday, Wanderlei Silva was arguably the most intimidating fighter in the sport, known for his berserker style of brawling that saw him demolish 27 opponents with strikes as he beat opponents from middleweight all the way through to heavyweight.

Hall of Famer Tito Ortiz has said that the hardest punch he ever felt was delivered by Silva, who, “threw an overhand right and caught me right on the chin,” during their fight at UFC 25. “It literally felt like the earth had been turned upside down.”

Another ex-UFC light-heavyweight champion Forrest Griffin also gives the nod to Silva after having a traumatic experience going up against him in training.

”Who hit me the hardest consistently was definitely Wanderlei,” Griffin said during a fan Q&A. “Sparring with him is a horrible idea – it takes years off your life. Don’t do it!”

Former heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum can vouch for that, as he’s gone on record that the first time he sparred Silva he was flash-KO’d twice by him in quick succession despite being in top control at the time.

The granite-chinned Dan Henderson has also claimed that Silva was his toughest-ever opponent, having suffered the first loss of his career to him at PRIDE 12, while he went on to tell MMAJunkie that, “hardest hitter might go to Wanderlei also.”

The post MMA’s 10 Hardest Hitters According To The Fighters appeared first on LowKickMMA.com.

Bigger Is Better: The Greatest Heavyweight Title Fights In UFC History

The UFC heavyweight landscape is one littered with towering mountains, turbulent storms, and unpredictable weather. It plays host to the baddest mixed martial artists in the world. While many champions have come and gone, the division has nonetheless produced countless barbarians. But the violent nature of the weight class as a whole has ultimately prohibited

The post Bigger Is Better: The Greatest Heavyweight Title Fights In UFC History appeared first on LowKick MMA.

The UFC heavyweight landscape is one littered with towering mountains, turbulent storms, and unpredictable weather. It plays host to the baddest mixed martial artists in the world.

While many champions have come and gone, the division has nonetheless produced countless barbarians. But the violent nature of the weight class as a whole has ultimately prohibited any one titleholder from ever defending the belt more than twice.

That sort of divisional hot potato may differ from other UFC factions, but it subsequently produces some of the best championship overthrows the promotion has ever seen. And considering many of those contests end in devastating fashion, the watching gets good.

Based on divisional importance, overall performances, and long-lasting worth, here are the 10 greatest heavyweights title fights in UFC history.

The post Bigger Is Better: The Greatest Heavyweight Title Fights In UFC History appeared first on LowKick MMA.

Monday Morning Link Dump: Pedro Rizzo Retires on a Win, Examining Bellator Dynamite, Pronstars Read Mean Comments + More

(Pedro Rizzo highlight reel, via HelloJapan05)

UFC Pioneer Pedro Rizzo Retires: It Ended How it Started, With Low Kicks in Brazil (BloodyElbow)

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Bellator Dynamite Is Completely Different, But Is That a Good Thing? (Bleacher Report)

NSAC Hits Jake Shields With 50 hours of Community Service for Role in WSOF Debacle Opposite Rousimar Palhares (MMAMania)

Paige VanZant and the White House Petition Dilemma (MMA Corner)

Legendary and Warner Bros. Are Reuniting For a King Kong vs. Godzilla Movie (The Escapist)

Video: Pornstars Read Mean Comments (EveryJoe)

‘Back To The Future’ Documentary Takes Us ‘Back In Time’ (Screen Junkies)

Bill Belichick and the Patriots Are Actually Responsible for Every Tragedy in History (17 Photos) (Radass)

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Transform Your Home: Essential Equipment for Your Home Gym (Storage)

The post Monday Morning Link Dump: Pedro Rizzo Retires on a Win, Examining Bellator Dynamite, Pronstars Read Mean Comments + More appeared first on Cagepotato.


(Pedro Rizzo highlight reel, via HelloJapan05)

UFC Pioneer Pedro Rizzo Retires: It Ended How it Started, With Low Kicks in Brazil (BloodyElbow)

Looking at the UFC’s Title Fight Decisions for the ‘Go Big’ Season (MMAFighting)

Video: Royce Gracie Talks Bellator 142 Tourney Strategy – and Chances of Return (MMAJunkie)

Bellator Dynamite Is Completely Different, But Is That a Good Thing? (Bleacher Report)

NSAC Hits Jake Shields With 50 hours of Community Service for Role in WSOF Debacle Opposite Rousimar Palhares (MMAMania)

Paige VanZant and the White House Petition Dilemma (MMA Corner)

Legendary and Warner Bros. Are Reuniting For a King Kong vs. Godzilla Movie (The Escapist)

Video: Pornstars Read Mean Comments (EveryJoe)

‘Back To The Future’ Documentary Takes Us ‘Back In Time’ (Screen Junkies)

Bill Belichick and the Patriots Are Actually Responsible for Every Tragedy in History (17 Photos) (Radass)

Ultimate Gun Game: A Short Film (WorldWideInterweb)

Transform Your Home: Essential Equipment for Your Home Gym (Storage)

The post Monday Morning Link Dump: Pedro Rizzo Retires on a Win, Examining Bellator Dynamite, Pronstars Read Mean Comments + More appeared first on Cagepotato.

Pedro Rizzo: Anderson Silva Said ‘I Will Be Back’

There has been so much speculation as to whether or not mixed martial arts legend Anderson Silva will return from a nasty leg injury suffered at UFC 168.
Some people think he’ll physically be unable to return, while others think it will be a lack of me…

There has been so much speculation as to whether or not mixed martial arts legend Anderson Silva will return from a nasty leg injury suffered at UFC 168.

Some people think he’ll physically be unable to return, while others think it will be a lack of mental motivation that will fuel future retirement.

Some people think he will return to the Octagon and fight like his former self, while others simply don’t know.

Either way, Silva’s return will never be truly set in stone until he actually says so or actually steps inside the cage.  So in the meantimeespecially considering the timetable of his returnall we can do is speculate.

And if we can’t get a final decision from the man himself, why not ask the man who trains him?

Former UFC heavyweight Pedro Rizzo and current trainer to Silva recently shed some light on the whole retirement situation, originally reported by Guilherme Cruz of MMA Fighting:

“At the hospital, Anderson told me ‘I will be back, master. I will be back,’” said Rizzo. “I told him ‘yeah, you’ll be back home to recover and rest’. And he said ‘I will be back, master.’ He’s a fighter. He has six months to recover, heal and then decide what he’s going to do next.”

“He has everything to come back to fighting if he wants,” added Rizzo.  “He has a good head to handle all the pressure from the UFC through all these years. Anderson will decide that. He just broke a leg, he has a lot of things to think now. He has nothing left to prove inside the Octagon. But if he decides to fight again, we will be there to help him.”

Rizzo was in Silva’s corner at UFC 168 when the former middleweight champion landed a leg kick that was perfectly checked by Chris Weidman.  According to him, it was an ending that “nobody could ever imagine.”

In any case, it’s going to be up to Silva’s body, mental fortitude and support from his family and friends that will dictate whether or not he makes a return to the UFC.

We would all be so lucky to see him entertain one more time.

 

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