Couturw wil tegen Big Nog @ UFC 101

**marcelt** · 01-03-2009, 00:16

Couture Accepts UFC 101 Bout with Nogueira

Written by admin Friday, 27 February 2009 A long-rumored bout between former UFC heavyweight champion Randy Couture and former UFC interim heavyweight champion Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira appears set to take place. According to multiple sources, he has agreed to face Nogueira at the yet-unannounced UFC 101 sometime in August. The event may take place in Portland, Oregon - USA
The UFC is now awaiting a response from Nogueira’s camp.
Previously, Couture was offered a fight with Nogueira in the first half of 2009, but his role in Sylvester Stallone’s “The Expendables,” set to film in late March, got in the way.
Couture was also rumored to be under consideration for UFC 99 in Cologne, Germany on June 13, but a source indicated he would be unable to complete a proper 8-week training camp and would not take the fight.
Nogueira was last seen at UFC 92, where he lost his interim heavyweight title in a TKO loss to current interim champ Frank Mir.
Couture – who has fought for or defended a title in 15 of his 19 UFC fights – lost the undisputed heavyweight title when he succumbed to strikes against Brock Lesnar at UFC 91.

Bron: Man Magazine

**wrestler_nl** · 01-03-2009, 00:26

couturw?

**dtgerald** · 01-03-2009, 14:48

Ik ga voor Nogueira .

**marcelt** · 01-03-2009, 15:43

Sunday, March 01, 2009
by Loretta Hunt ([email protected])

16385
A clash between former UFC and Pride heavyweight champions has been agreed upon, at least in principle, to take place inside the Octagon sometime in August.

Six-time UFC champion Randy Couture confirmed to Sherdog.com on Thursday that he’d verbally agreed to face Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira in a UFC 101 matchup, which was first reported by MMAWeekly.com. Couture’s camp received word on Saturday that the vaunted Brazilian has accepted the bout as well.

Couture had previously turned down an offer to fight Nogueira earlier this year to undergo elbow surgery in January for an old injury.

Bout agreements for the anticipated heavyweight fight still remain to be signed, while Couture will have a host of projects to juggle with the fight, including a major motion picture role in “The Expendables,” which will shoot from March to May in Brazil and Louisiana. Couture will star alongside Sylvester Stallone, who wrote and will also direct the film that includes an assemblage of action star greats from Jet Li to Jason Statham, as well as recent Oscar nominee Mickey Rourke.

Couture will also shoot a role in the film “Warrior,” directed by Gavin O’Connor, sometime this summer.

Couture (16-9) dropped his third heavyweight title to Brock Lesnar at UFC 91 in Las Vegas last November, after the 2000 NCAA wrestling champion clipped the 45-year-old fighter with a right and sent him to the canvas. The matchup had been competitive up until that point, though Lesnar had nearly 50 pounds on Couture.

During his 12-year professional career, Couture also earned three UFC titles at light heavyweight, including an interim championship against former 205-pound champ Chuck Liddell. Couture holds wins over notables Liddell, Vitor Belfort, Kevin Randleman, and Tim Sylvia.

Nogueira (31-5-1), who blazed through Pride’s heavyweight ranks until three ill-fated meetings with No. 1 world-ranked Fedor Emelianenko, will also be on the rebound.

The 32-year-old jiu-jitsu black belt was stopped for the first time ever with a second-round technical knockout at the hands of Frank Mir in their interim title bout at UFC 92 last December. Mir will meet champion Lesnar to unify the two belts at UFC 98 on May 23 in Las Vegas.

Outside of Emelianenko and Mir, only Dan Henderson and Josh Barnett can lay claim to victory over the revered Brazilian.

Couture travels to Germany this week to take part in a press conference for UFC 99, the promotion’s first foray into the country. UFC 99 will be held at the Lanxess Arena on June 13 in Cologne. The German-speaking Couture, who spent the majority of his four-year Army career there, was considered to headline the card, although his prior film engagements prevented his participation.