Sherdog’s Top 10: Light Heavyweights of All-Time

6. Randy Couture

Three men -- Couture, B.J. Penn and Conor McGregor -- have captured Ultimate Fighting Championship gold in multiple weight classes. “The Natural” enjoyed five title reigns covering some 1,500 days: three as a heavyweight and two more as a light heavyweight. A staggering 15 of his 24 career appearances inside the Octagon came in title bouts, and he has headlined more UFC events than any other fighter. Couture was a three-time NCAA All-American wrestler at Oklahoma State University before gracing the Octagon for the first time at UFC 13 in 1997. By the end of the year, he was the heavyweight champion. Couture later vacated the title and spent a few years competing in Japan before returning to the UFC on a permanent basis in 2001. Victories over Pedro Rizzo (twice), Chuck Liddell, Tito Ortiz, Vitor Belfort, Tim Sylvia and Mark Coleman followed, as he became one of the most decorated and beloved competitors in MMA history. Couture was the fourth fighter to be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame on June 24, 2006, when he joined Royce Gracie, Dan Severn and Ken Shamrock in the organization’s pantheon of immortals. An Everett, Washington, native, “The Natural” retired in 2011 at the age of 47 following his knockout loss to Lyoto Machida at UFC 129 in Toronto.

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