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WILL RANDY COUTURE FIGHT AGAIN? Saturday, August 02, 2008 - by Tom Hamlin - MMAWeekly.com LONG BEACH, Calif. – MMAWeekly.com caught up with former UFC heavyweight champion Randy Couture this week at a signing for his new book, “Becoming the Natural.” He was tired, bogged down from 14-hour days of back-to-back interviews and PR events. Wife Kim Couture described the book tour as a full day of being “on,” smiling and shaking hands, a constant parade of new faces.
A little over a week into the tour, Couture is getting tired of talking about himself all day.
“All the time,” he said with a smile.
Couture’s success outside the cage has blossomed since his departure from the UFC. He’s got a book, a movie debut, and a slate of film projects into next year. His fighting career, though, may be in serious jeopardy.
Couture is still neck-deep in a legal dispute with Zuffa, LLC over the terms of the contracts he signed in December of 2006 and January of 2007. His resignation in October of 2007 set off a flurry of courtroom activity that’s left his fighting career in limbo.
“Just seeing how it unfolds,” Couture said of his case. “I keep hearing every week, ‘oh, we’ll hear something this week.’ I don’t know; it’s the legal system.”
There are two albatrosses over Couture’s head. His employment contract, an agreement that brought him into the UFC fold as a commentator and de facto company representative, is the subject of a lawsuit brought in State Court by Zuffa in Nevada. Zuffa alleges that, among other things, Couture violated the terms of his employment contract in February when the Xtreme Couture name was briefly used in conjunction with an International Fight League event in Las Vegas. The term of the non-compete provision of the employment contract is set to expire on the 12th of October – his lawyers and Zuffa, LLC are in agreement about that. But Couture could face damages if the court sides with the Las Vegas based organization. The suit is ongoing, and may stretch into next year.
The second front in the legal battle is over his fight contract with Zuffa. By all indicators, it is the most hotly contested portion of the dispute.
Currently, depositions are taking place in Los Angeles and Las Vegas as a part of arbitration proceedings on Couture’s fight contract. Zuffa’s lawyers began the proceedings in Nevada shortly after lawyers from Mark Cuban’s HDNet filed a petition in a Texas court asking for a declaration on Couture’s status under his fight contract with Zuffa – when he would be free to fight for another organization. Zuffa’s lawyers in Texas were denied a motion to dismiss/motion to stay the case, but later appealed the decision and won an emergency stay in the appeals court.
Pending before the trial court in Texas was HDNet's Motion for Summary Judgment, which would have effectively dealt with Couture's status and ability to fight for another organization. The stay effectively froze the case. To make matters worse for Couture, on Friday, the Texas appeals court has now ruled on the matter and put in place a more permanent stay pending the outcome of the Nevada arbitration proceeding. Without the declaration, Couture’s lawyers can’t use its precedent in any proceeding in Nevada. Arbitration proceedings also take place outside the court system, are not always bound by the same rules, and are subject to more stringent confidentiality requirements.
On July 19, the term of Couture’s fight contract ended. That set off a 30-day period where Zuffa could negotiate exclusively with Couture. But Zuffa claims his resignation, deemed a “retirement,” suspended the term of the contract in perpetuity, or forever. Unless Couture gives the UFC two more fights, he is forbidden to compete anywhere else.
“In a contract, there’s a term of the contract, there’s ways to extend the term and shorten the term,” said a contract lawyer MMAWeekly.com contacted that chose to remain anonymous. “At the same time, people have a right to earn a livelihood. It’s the involuntary servitude argument. The UFC can’t force Randy to perform, but they can prevent him from being competitive to do what he is supposed to do.”
Given the stay on Couture’s declaration, it’s unlikely that the Texas court will ever be able to affect the arbitration proceedings.
“The judge may look at this and say how long can I impose this restriction on him, and then he looks at a bunch of different factors and says based upon these factors, and based upon the fact that someone has a right to earn a livelihood, I see the damages as being X,” the lawyer continued. “So therefore, you either don’t (perform), or you pay them this amount of damages.”
However, Couture's lawyers likely will argue that by the contract's own provisions, the term of the fight contract has ended and that by simple contract law, Couture is free to pursue fights in other organizations – that all of the noise regarding "retirement" and Couture still being referred to as the "UFC heavyweight champion" – is just Zuffa's attempt to provide legal remedies where none currently exist.
Since his departure from the Octagon, Couture has vacillated between an eagerness to face Fedor Emelianenko and acceptance that his fight with Gabriel Gonzaga at UFC 74 may be his last. But he has also never strayed from his original goal. Emelianenko’s performance at Affliction’s “Banned” re-lit his competitive spark. In turn, the Russian didn’t need a translator to tell the world he was ready for “The Natural.”
“If (the UFC) finds a way to sign Fedor (Emelianenko) and make that happen, then that’s where we’ll fight,” Couture said. “I don’t care where it’s at, just as long as it happens.”
Couture has gotten used to waiting for what he wants. He’s got a lot to entertain – or exhaust – him in the next few years of his life. His fighting future will be determined by the arbitration’s findings, which could take months, if not years, to resolve. Until then, he will stay in limbo.
“It’s going to happen, it’s just a matter of when,” he said.
I'd wait a few years for quarter to half million dollar windfall fight too (if I had to and I think he does have to legally speaking). The guy isnt retarded.
__________________ The name means...No matter how many times you cut him, he will never fall. My soul cutter has no name, it is merely a tool.
I'll Still Kill!
Even the best of men are capable of the most disgusting evil. Just as the most evil man is capable of showing kindness.
Do not be fooled into thinking your enemy's sin is worse than yours, or that your's is better than his.
I still think Randy wants to fight Fedor. He's the only guy he wants to fight. Otherwise, if he was only in it for the money, he could've stayed with UFC and get paid for defending his title against bunch of contenders but Randy's been in this business long enough and is already a Hall of Famer, he doesn't need to fight any more contenders. He wants his place in history by fighting Fedor, and even if he loses, he'd put up a great fight. However, the time is definitely against him as he's not getting any younger and by next year, he's not going to be the same fighter he was last year or is this year.
One last thing, he knew what he was signing when he signed it. He knew there was really no one in his division at UFC. If he really wanted to fight the best he wouldnt have signed his deal the last time.
__________________ The name means...No matter how many times you cut him, he will never fall. My soul cutter has no name, it is merely a tool.
I'll Still Kill!
Even the best of men are capable of the most disgusting evil. Just as the most evil man is capable of showing kindness.
Do not be fooled into thinking your enemy's sin is worse than yours, or that your's is better than his.
At that time, he wanted to fight Tim Sylvia for the championship and he really believed that UFC was going to be able to sign Fedor to UFC, which they couldn't. And he had to sign a multiple fight deal since UFC wasn't going to give him a single fight contract to fight for the title, in case he won the title, then they'd had to renegotiate with the current champ, which they don't want to do.
WILL RANDY COUTURE FIGHT AGAIN?
I'll Still Kill!
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