Randy Couture Training Vid + Interview [Archive]

Mickey

13-04-2005, 13:03

Bron: http://www.insidefighting.com/betweenRoundsDisp.aspx?uid=1714

Question: The two days weâ€™ve spent with you have been very team oriented. Is that typical for Team Quest or is it a function of the fact that so many guys have fights coming up in the next month?

Couture: Itâ€™s usually this way. Weâ€™ve got a team â€“ several guys who are usually always competing or training for a competition. Sometimes youâ€™re the dummy whoâ€™s giving a guy a look and being a good partner by making sure he works hard but wins his rounds. Sometimes theyâ€™re stacking up on you and making sure you get your workout in and are fully prepared for your fight. Thatâ€™s the way itâ€™s always been around here.

Question: The last time you two fought, it appeared that your game plan was to come forward, cut off the ring and throw lead right hands or counter right hands to set up the takedown. Will you bring that same game plan into the Octagon on April 16th?

Couture: My game plan wonâ€™t change a whole lot from the last fight. I donâ€™t think Iâ€™ll have to cut off the ring and hunt him down this time. I think heâ€™ll come out more aggressively this time, which will be good because that plays into my style better. Iâ€™ve got to change the angles and move my head a lot. I donâ€™t want to just stand in front of him because he has good striking ability and he will hit you. I expect to get hit during the fight. But I think that I have to be willing to go out and engage him. Iâ€™ve got to throw some combinations and get him to throw punches back, that way heâ€™ll be open for the takedown. When I take him down, I have to try and hold him down as long as I can and make him pay while heâ€™s down there â€“ score and score often in that transition when he tries to scramble back up, which is exactly what heâ€™s going to do.

Question: Speaking of Liddellâ€™s scrambling ability, why is he so tough to hold down when you were able to keep other elite fighters like Tito Ortiz and Vitor Belfort on their backs during the entire fight?

Couture: Belfort is still in the jiu-jitsu mode, in that he still wants to play the guard game and look for the submission from his back. If he gets taken down, heâ€™s willing to stay there. Heâ€™s not trying to scramble and get back up. Being a black belt, Iâ€™m sure heâ€™s confident in ability to force an opponent into making a mistake and catching a submission. So, he kind of locks himself into that bottom position, which I think is a mistake, especially considering as good as his hands are.

As far as Tito is concerned, I donâ€™t think he every really spent a lot of time working from his back (before UFC 44). Knowing Tito, heâ€™s probably trying to fix that and do what he needs to do to either scramble and get neutral or scramble and get back on top, which is obviously his best position. I think at that time, he didnâ€™t have the technique. I think he has the mentality and the ability, but he didnâ€™t have the technique. He didnâ€™t have the skill set to get up off the bottom, so consequently he was stuck there. And he doesnâ€™t have the submission skills to be effective from the bottom, either, so it was kind of a â€˜No Manâ€™s Landâ€™ for him. That fight really was wrestling 101. It came down to wrestling skills - who is going to get the takedown and maintain that top position.

Couture is an expert at using straight punches to set up the takedown

Question: At what point did you decide adopt that same scramble mentality into your game rather than going the jiu-jitsu route by working on improving your offensive guard?

Couture: For me, it started with Josh Barnett. Thatâ€™s when I noticed the flaw in my thinking. At first, I thought this jiu-jitsu stuff was cool and I started playing the guard game was neat. Then you get a big SOB like that on top of you, heâ€™s pounding you in the head and you canâ€™t get out from underneath him. That kind of adversity tends to make you change your thinking. I was like, â€˜Man, I donâ€™t ever want to be there again.â€™ Then, I ended up there again against (Ricco) Rodriguez. He was big, skilled, and used his weight well. I had already started looking to add ways to be more effective and get off my back â€“ not play the guard game, not close my feet, not look for a submission, but try to create scrambles. With my wrestling background, we have this ability, a mat sense, to scramble. Once I made that mental shift, it was just a matter of time.

I also watched Chuck (Liddell), and watched how he scrambled to his feet. Once I saw how he did it and understood how he was able to get up, we immediately started implementing things into our game from scouting Chuck. Weâ€™ve taken those and developed them further, and come up with some other things from wrestling and jiu-jitsu. Also, Robert Follis is terrific. Heâ€™s technically fantastic. He is a great coach. And we came up with a whole different game plan. Itâ€™s really trickled down to all our guys from the top and the bottom positions. Itâ€™s exciting, and Iâ€™m anxious to get out there and use some of it.

Question: When you step into the cage with Liddell, what is the one thing that you must watch out for (and counter or defend against) in order to win the fight?

I think allowing him to settle into his rhythm is the one thing I have to watch out for. If he can control the tempo, set and find his range, he has tremendous leverage in those long arms to strike and knock guys out. Heâ€™s knocked out some great fighters. So, I canâ€™t allow him to settle into that rhythm and control the tempo of the fight. I have to press it and make him brawl. I think it is the best thing ever if he comes out trying to knock me out. When you get into that mindset, your opponentâ€™s head shrinks to about the size of an apple â€“ a guy is really hard to hit when youâ€™re looking for the knockout. If he comes out and tries to settle into his natural rhythm and just score, then the knockout comes by itself. Heâ€™s got the technique and the ability to get knockouts. He said that heâ€™s going to knock me out, so I hope that is what he tries to do. That will play into my style and make it better for me.

Question: After UFC 43, a lot of people said that you â€œoutstruck the strikerâ€? by throwing short, straight punches down the middle, whereas Liddellâ€™s punches were wide and looping. Do you agree with that statement or do people make too much out of straight versus looping punches?

Couture: I donâ€™t know if people make too much out of that. I think he was surprised that I was willing to even try to stand with him. And I think the fact that I threw shorter, straighter punches up the middle allowed me to get off first, which kept him off balance. It didnâ€™t let him settle in, use the longer range punches that he likes and control the fight with a slower tempo. By me cutting off the ring and getting off before he had a chance to throw, again, didnâ€™t allow him to settle in like he likes to. That made all the difference in the fight. It frustrated him and the harder he tried to get on track, the easier he was to take down - that wears you out.

Couture's army boxing background is actually more myth than reality

Question: Talk about your boxing background for a moment, if you donâ€™t mind. How did you learn to throw such technically sound strikes when you come from a lifetime of wrestling?

Couture: Thatâ€™s actually a common misconception. In one of the early UFCs they talked about my extensive boxing background in the army. Well, thatâ€™s not really true. I trained for three weeks in the army for a boxing smoker. And it was solely to get out of regular PT (physical training) and running in my combat boots. At Fort Rucker in Alabama, there are three major units that train there â€“ student pilots, student air traffic controllers and student helicopter mechanics. They all sort of fit together. So, the three units have this big boxing smoker. We formed our team. We had our trainers. And instead of going to regular physical fitness, we got to go the gym and practice. Heck, I had never boxed in my life, but I was like â€˜sign me up!â€™ Anything is better than standing in formation and running!

So, I went to the boxing gym every day for three weeks. But I didnâ€™t get a fight because there wasnâ€™t a match up from the other two units in my weight class. That was the extent of my boxing training before my first fight. A lot of people assume that I have all this boxing experience because of that UFC comment. Itâ€™s funny what people tune in to. But they picked that up and think thatâ€™s why Iâ€™m so good at boxing. So, pretty much everything Iâ€™ve learned has been since my first UFC fight. I did a lot of boxing training before the first Belfort fight. I trained hard every day for three or four weeks in Hermosa Beach. It made a big difference in my footwork and ability, so that I could throw a modicum of technically proficient punches. Itâ€™s funny to watch the tapes from back then. I was terrible at punching! Itâ€™s embarrassing! Iâ€™m fortunate that Iâ€™ve been exposed to very high level guys. I spent a month in Australia after I retired from wrestling. I trained with a bunch of guys down there at the Boxing Works in Sydney. They started adding some kicks, which really added to the progression of my ability to strike.

After fighting Pedro Rizzo the first time, I hooked up with Maurice Smith. He really took my striking game to a new level. He changed my stance, my balance and really refined my striking. Obviously, that showed in the second Pedro fight. There was a pretty dynamic difference compared to the first fight. Since then, Iâ€™ve spent time with a guy in Sacramento â€“ Nasser Niaveroni. He added some interesting things and has some great drills. He works with champion boxers and also used to work with Dennis Alexio, a champion kickboxer. I learned a lot of cool stuff from him. Our guys here at the guy, Robert and Dave Hagen, Iâ€™ve learned a lot of new stuff working with those guys. Iâ€™m constantly striving to improve that part of my game. I feel like the more proficient and technical my striking skills are, the more effective my wrestling will be. The more of a threat that I am on my feet punching and kicking guys, the easier it is to take them down. Relying on my wrestling will always be strength because that is my background. I have 30+ years of wrestling in my body.

Will Couture have the same success on the feet this time around?

Question: Liddell made the comment that youâ€™re so dangerous because you arenâ€™t afraid to get hit. He said that is what separates you from most other wrestlers. Do you agree with that statement?

Couture: Yes, I think thatâ€™s a very accurate statement. Itâ€™s not that I want to get hit. But getting hit is part of this. I donâ€™t care how good you are, you are going to get hit. I donâ€™t care how fast and slick you think you are, you are going to get hit. As soon as you come to terms with that and make friends with it, the better off you are going to be. There is no avoiding it. You do your best to use footwork and head movement to try and minimize damage, but you might as well get in there and get the job done.

That is kind of Chuckâ€™s mentality on the ground. Heâ€™s like â€˜Iâ€™m turning over, standing up. I donâ€™t care if you hit me because the longer I stay down here the more you will hit me, so I might as well turn over, take a few shots and get up.â€™ Thatâ€™s pretty much his mentality, too.

Question: I know you arenâ€™t looking past Liddell, but if you beat him, what is left for you in MMA? Is it a fantasy fight against Wanderlei Silva or a match against fast-rising star Rich Franklin? Or is there another name on your radar screen?

Couture: I think both of those things are possibilities. I think you are exactly right. I havenâ€™t looked past Chuck. Obviously, there have been a lot of rumors and a lot talk about the Wanderlei fight. Itâ€™s a pipe dream. I donâ€™t know that it will ever happen. Iâ€™d like to find a way to facilitate it and make it happen. But ultimately, my bread is buttered with the UFC. Theyâ€™ve taken care of me very well. Iâ€™ve made my career and reputation with them, so I donâ€™t want to do anything to burn that bridge or damage that relationship. That may not be the best professional decision. Well, that depends on your perspective. There are some guys out there that Iâ€™d like to fight, but they are with Pride, unfortunately.

Franklin is a tough cat. Iâ€™m surprised heâ€™s coming back up because he looked so good at 185. Itâ€™s not that he didnâ€™t look good at 205, but heâ€™s a real force at 185. I would have picked him to be right in there to try and take out Evan Tanner like he did at 205 for the title. But I would savor the opportunity to fight Franklin. Heâ€™s a great competitor. Plus, you get to beat up Jim Careyâ€™s evil twin. That canâ€™t be bad, right?"

If Randy Couture is able to get past Chuck Liddell on Saturday night, he will have single-handedly cleaned out the UFC 205-lb. division. But getting past the Iceman is no walk in the park, but the champ embraces the challenge and is fully prepared and ready to go!