Ringside Report

"Randy Couture: Becoming the Natural" Book Review

Battling as the underdog in an Ultimate Fighting Championship match or in amateur wrestling has always put a smile on Randy “The Natural” Couture’s face—he thrived even in grueling military training.
At 45 years old the man, also known as “Captain America,” was UFC Heavyweight champion. He has been defying the odds by beating 20-something-year-old fighters and long-time favourites ever since he broke into UFC at age 33. Couture is one of the fighters responsible for bringing mixed martial arts out of the taboo sport category and into the pop culture level—his natural charisma and ability to beat the odds over and over has made him the poster boy for MMA.
In his latest memoirs, Becoming The Natural: My Life In and Out of the Cage, Couture brings you into his world of MMA and how he was first introduced to the sport. Couture goes into great detail on how he had a tough time growing up with his mom switching husbands every so often. The lack of a father figure weighed on Couture a lot in his youthful rebellious years, which led him to be a college dropout at 19 with a wife and a kid.
Couture went to the army to support his family and kept up with the amateur wrestling training that he got while in school. Couture trained constantly in order to become a multi-time wrestling world champion. Three years in a row he came up just a little short in his bid to become an Olympian.
Entering the cage, or octagon, was a big step for Couture. “What the hell am I doing?” was one his first thoughts going out to compete against someone who could punch him in the face. Couture, never one to shy away from a fight, excelled and racked up impressive victories, using his Greco-Roman wrestling skills to defeat kickboxer Mo Smith for his first UFC title win.
Couture soon found out that the business side of UFC could be difficult to handle. Current UFC boss Dana White, during contract negotiations with Couture, was “so irrational and emotional, screaming and yelling and cussing.” White ended up going behind Couture’s managers’ backs, telling Couture that they were nothing but “hair fags.” Couture did find some common ground with White during the taping of The Ultimate Fighter’s first season.
“He invited me and [Chuck] Liddell to his house to watch a boxing match, and his office was plastered with UFC posters and memorabilia. It was obvious that this was more than just a job for him. I think that was something that we both saw in each other that changed our relationship. We had been adversaries throughout the years of contract negotiations, but this was the first time we were ever on the same side.”
The book wraps up as of July 2008, with his last contract dispute undecided. Since then, Couture has signed back with UFC for UFC 91, where he lost his UFC title to the 265-pound Brock Lesnar, Couture has never received a rematch.
Couture’s passion to push new limits makes this book difficult to put down. Couture’s life is filled with drama, either on the mat, with his friends, or in his home. Couture’s open honesty when it comes to cheating on his two ex-wives is disheartening, but as with the other brutally honest statements made throughout the book, they show that he has come to terms with his mistakes. MMA journalist and ghostwriter Loretta Hunt does an excellent job bringing out Couture’s personal side.
MMA fans will love how much detail goes into some of Couture’s biggest fights. From his three bouts with Liddell, his upset win of the UFC lightheavyweight championship against Tito Ortiz and his battles with “The Phenom” Viktor Belfort, are all must-reads for fans wanting to know what goes through the mind of one of the greatest clinch and ground-and-pound fighters.