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"He's one of the best guys I've ever met," White confirms. But back then, he never thought much of Couture's chances at UFC 47. White and the UFC brass were salivating at the monumental payday that surely lay ahead when "The Huntington Beach Badboy" Tito Ortiz, the light heavyweight champion, and Liddell, the No. 1 contender, squared off. But controversy with contract negotiations and Ortiz's dissatisfaction with fighting Liddell, a former training partner came to a head on June 6, 2003. Liddell was there for a fight, Ortiz was not. So, it had been determined that Liddell, a knockout machine with eight consecutive victories, would fight Couture, the loser of his last two fights who was dropping from heavyweight to light heavyweight, for the weight division's interim title. "Everyone pretty much assumed I was being fed to Chuck to build him up," Couture recalls. White admits now that was his intention and it was quite evident the night of the fight. All of the pre-fight talk centered around Liddell and Ortiz. "I know as a fan, and I can speak for all fans, that's the fight everyone wants to see," Rogan said before the fight. Couture was introduced first, quite unspectacularly. Liddell's entrance saw the arena go dark and a subsequent elaborate video sequence coupled with pyro. It was the Iceman's time to take center stage. It was Couture's time to let "Father Time" take its course. But "Captain America" changed the UFC's plans with three rounds of stunning dominance. They ended with Liddell on his back, beaten and bloodied, and Rogan proclaiming, "What an incredible upset! Randy Couture is an animal. ... That guy's amazing." "From there," Couture says, "my career kind of took a huge swing up." The always-humble Couture was positioned for, arguably, the most dominant run in UFC history. He out struck Liddell, one of the most famed strikers in mixed-martial arts history, and made history himself, becoming the only fighter in UFC history to win belts in two different weight classes. Next up was Ortiz, the brash, controversial poster boy of the UFC, riding a six-fight winning streak and seen by most as unstoppable. Ortiz was 28 and in his prime. Couture had pulled off an improbable upset against Liddell just a month and a half before his 40th birthday - surely the magical ride would come to a halt at UFC 48. Just as Couture had defied the odds and beaten Liddell at his own game, he did the same with Ortiz. Out grounding and out pounding Ortiz, Couture won a lopsided five-round decision to become the undisputed champion. "That guy is my hero!" exclaimed Rogan after Couture had reduced the cocky Ortiz to tears in defeat and literally spanked his butt during the one-sided affair. "Unbelievable. Forty years young. Captain America ladies and gentlemen. That's the baddest dude on the planet." During Couture's magical and memorable run - the only speed bump came with a loss to Belfort due to an incidental cut just 49 seconds into the fight - he defied critics and age, as he was the headliner for a sport that was growing and growing, just like his fan base. He knocked out Liddell, humbled Ortiz and stopped Belfort in a second rematch. "Amazing," says White of the run. "He looked unstoppable." Liddell would stop him, however. On the heels of the breakout first season of "The Ultimate Fighter" on SpikeTV, Couture defended his title against Liddell at a sold-out MGM Grand in Las Vegas. It concluded a whirlwind stanza in UFC history, featuring the emergence of "The Ultimate Fighter" with Couture and Liddell as coaches, the first live fight card with the show's finale and the mega fight that was "The Natural" and "The Iceman" II. A Liddell straight right, placed perfectly on Couture's jaw, set up a rubber match. The oddest thing about the rivalry was that it was anything but. The combatants dished out respect and punches in equal amounts. It was fueled by their abilities and their individual charisma. There was no underlying bad blood, no heated words nor feuding. "When you talk to Randy, he had nothing but respect for Chuck, and Chuck had nothing but respect for Randy," White says. "That trilogy proved a fight could sell without two guys hating each other." It's an aspect that has been commonplace with Couture, however. His fights were always about competition, his career was always about being the best. "I've never really had the situation going into a fight [where I'm] disliking the person I'm about to fight," Couture says. "The fact that most of the fighters are nice guys surprises a lot of people. They think, 'You're fighting in a cage, you must be some wild animal.'" And so, months before Liddell-Couture III, Couture broke the news of his retirement behind closed doors. Couture still vividly recalls White's reaction: "He said bullshit." "I still say bullshit," White jokes. Couture walked to the octagon that day knowing he would walk away no matter how it ended. It was a walk away that would last longer than the fight itself. "I think a lot of people were overwhelmed by the moment," he says. Couture was showered with affection as he made his way to the locker room, stopping for hugs, pictures, autographs, handshakes and congratulations on a brilliant career. Now, when familiar foes Ortiz and Liddell fight for a second time, Couture will be there as a color commentator, just as he was the first time the two fought shortly after he'd disposed of them both. Only this time, he won't be defending his title against the victor. Fact is, he's far too busy. "I'm gonna have to come out of retirement just to get a break," Couture grins. "I retired from fighting, but I'm far from retired."
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