Throughout his illustrious mixed martial arts career, former UFC heavyweight/light heavyweight champion Randy Couture has been nothing short of professional.
He never gloated after a victory, nor offered an excuse following a defeat. And Couture maintained that professionalism after his final fight inside the Octagon -- a second-round knockout loss to Lyoto Machida at UFC 129.
“I’m the last guy who is going to make any excuses,” Couture told ESPN.com. “I got caught with a good kick. It was well set up. It was a different kick than he’s thrown in any other fight he’s ever been in.
“I’ve watched all his fights. I’ve seen him throw front kicks; I’ve seen him throw a front kick with a punch combination, and I thought that’s what he was starting to set up, when he started to move his left leg. But he obviously jumped into that front kick with his right foot, and that’s not something I’ve ever seen him do before.”
Couture accepts the loss with his usual class. Maybe it just wasn’t his night. But the outcome might have been altered somewhat had a very important member of his team been in his corner that night.
Boxing coach Gil Martinez was unable to corner Couture in Toronto because of visa issues. Martinez, who also oversees the boxing of top-ranked lightweight contender Gray Maynard, refuses to say he was the difference between Couture winning and losing at Rogers Centre, but believes his presence would have proved beneficial in some way.
“I would like to think so, without sounding too self-involved,” Martinez told ESPN.com. “I think I could have been a little bit of a difference. In the first round, Randy was working on the game plan that we had. He was executing it 100 percent. In the second round, he made the mistake of standing in front of [Machida]. The whole plan was not to give Lyoto a direct target.
"Randy is a tremendous athlete and he is extremely coachable. That being said, I think a little reminder of the game plan during that break would have kept him concentrated and moving in the direction that we wanted. I think it would have been a huge difference in the fight.”
Couture agrees that Martinez’s absence was felt, even before fight night.
“We missed him there,” Couture said. “He worked on very specific footwork and punching combinations [throughout] the whole camp. We didn’t have anybody there to replicate that the week of the fight, the last three or four workouts. And then, obviously, [I missed] him relaying what he was seeing with regard to those things, the muscle memory we developed, those combinations and stuff during the course of the round.
“Gil’s been a big part of the last four or five camps.”
Couture has moved on from the loss, but it sure would have been sweet to go out victorious. Despite the setback, he has no intention of stepping in the cage one more time.
“I’m comfortable with the decision, and relieved that it’s over,” said Couture, who exits mixed martial arts with a 19-11-0 record. “It’s been fun.”