One of the legends of MMA, Randy Couture has held both the heavyweight and light heavyweight belts in the UFC. Couture's departure from the company, however, was a little different than the other fighters on this list. First, Couture, a late starter in the sport of MMA, entered into a brief retirement period after his second loss to Chuck Liddell, which was for the UFC light heavyweight title in 2006. When he returned, he went straight into a heavyweight bout with Champion Tim Sylvia, winning the belt in March 2007. He defended the title against Gabriel Gonzaga in August 2007, then announced he was cutting ties with the UFC, unhappy with fighter pay and the UFC's inability to sign heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko. However, in January 2008 the UFC sued as Couture was still under contract. After winning an initial motion, the UFC announced that it had signed Couture to a new contract. His first fight back? Brock Lesnar. Couture lost, and the Lesnar era began. Couture would lose his next match to Big Nog in a Fight of the Year bout, then win his next three (two of which were at light heavyweight) before losing his final bout against Lyoto Machida at UFC 129 in Toronto.
Primarily covering the sport of MMA from Ontario, Canada, Jay Anderson has been writing for various publications covering sports, technology, and pop culture since 2001. Jay holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of Guelph, and a Certificate in Leadership Skills from Humber College.
