What Now For "The Natural"?

UFC 91 is now a fading memory. Brock Lesnar is the new UFC heavyweight champion, and he is slated to fight the winner of Frank Mir / Nogueira sometime in early 2009.

What about Randy "The Natural" Couture? After returning to the UFC following a lengthy absence, what does the future hold for the 45-year old UFC Hall of Famer? Retirement? A drop to light heavyweight?

Here is what we know for sure at this point:

-Randy Couture is not retiring (if you watched UFC 91, then you know that Couture expressed his desire to continue fighting, and feels that he is still improving as a fighter)

-Randy Couture is inked to a three fight deal, and there are still two fights left in his contract. There is no reason to believe that Couture won't finish out his deal

-Couture/Fedor is likely never going to happen

-Couture has not said anything about returning to the light heavyweight division, but it seems to make the most sense for his career at this point. Aside from a Lesnar rematch, what compelling match-ups are there for Couture in the HW division at this point? Couture/Nogueira? That would be a great fight, however Nogueira would likely have to lose to Mir at UFC 92 for this fight to take place.

-the UFC can still make a ton of money with Randy Couture, even if he isn't the heavyweight champion any longer

Randy Couture has a limited shelf life (he is 45 years old, don't forget) and is still one of the UFC's most popular fighters (if not the most popular). The UFC isn't going to "waste" Couture by having him fight against lower-level heavyweights, in an attempt to fight his way back to a title shot.

Here are some possible scenarios for Randy Couture at this point:

1. Couture/Liddell 4. Both of these fighters are at a cross-roads in their careers right now. There have been rumblings of Liddell moving up to heavyweight to take on Couture. Liddell could quite easily move up to heavyweight or Couture could move down to light heavyweight - either way it works. There is a ton of history between these two fighters, and the match sells itself. I think that a Couture/Liddell fight makes much more sense than a Liddell/Silva fight, as has been rumored for a while. Couture / Liddell IV seems like a very viable option for the UFC at this point. Maybe we are looking at a possible fight for UFC 100 here?

2. Couture/Lesnar rematch. This fight will likely never happen. Assuming that Lesnar gets past the winner of Mir/Nogueira, Lesnar would then likely face off against someone like Gonzaga or maybe even Carwin. I don't see Couture fitting into this picture, and I don't think that he particularly wants a rematch with Lesnar. Maybe if Lesnar loses to Mir/Nogueira this fight will happen - who knows.

3. Couture/Nogueira. I'd love to see a Couture/Nogueira fight, as I'm sure many fans would. However, Nogueira would likely have to lose to Frank Mir for this fight to take place in the short-term - will that happen? Probably not. Assuming that Nogueira beats Lesnar, Couture could make for a great first title defense for Nogueira. We are talking months down the line though - maybe the fall of 2009.

It's kind of hard to figure the next few steps for Couture at this point. I'm obviously speculating like everyone else. Couture is in the same sort of position that Chuck Liddell is in at this point - a former UFC champion who is still extremely marketable but doesn't really have a clear path right now. It will be interesting to see what Dana White and the UFC come up with for Liddell and Couture at this point in their careers.

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