Sherdog’s Top 10: Greatest Light Heavyweights

8. Randy Couture

Couture’s ranking in our poll was all over the place, coming in as high as third and as low as 10th. He had a very short, abbreviated career at light heavyweight and lost frequently, but he also scored some sensational, timeless victories over fellow greats in the prime of their careers. Almost no one expected the 40-year-old Couture to defeat Chuck Liddell, but not only did he win, he actually got the better of the striking on his way to stopping Liddell in the third round. Next, nobody expected him to defeat Tito Ortiz, the UFC light heavyweight kingpin and its signature star at the time, but Couture dominated him for five full rounds. After losing the title by TKO due to an improbable cut from Vitor Belfort’s glove, Couture left no doubt in their rematch, battering Belfort against the cage until the systematic beating was waved off at the end of the third round.

After two knockout losses to Liddell, Couture returned to heavyweight, though he did finish his career his light heavyweight, taking an utter robbery against Brandon Vera, submitting an equally oldbut far more shopworn Mark Coleman, and finally being slept by a front kick to the face by Machida in his last fight. It was a short spell at 205, but Couture scored three awesome wins against fellow legends during that time.

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