Randy Couture

It's probably too soon to assume that Randy Couture really is done fighting, given that he's retired before and would be hard-pressed to pass up a fight with Emilianenko if somebody could arrange it. But I probably wouldn't attempt a summary of his career anyway, since a thousand people are typing it up right now.

I admire Couture as a fighter, and he seems like a pretty nice guy even if he looks like a comic-book thug. But what i find most impressive about the man is that he's still fighting and training at the age of 44. Now, i know that many people have made a big deal about Couture's age, but in my case it's not an astract thing. I turn 44 this year, and as somebody who trains in both the martial arts and endurance sports, I find Couture's durability to be nothing short of awesome. I have some idea of just how much the dude must hurt on some days. There are days when i wake up in the morning after having had a grappling class the night before, and i can barely get out of bed. Couture has to grapple, wrestle, box, strength train, and do conditioning work. He must take ibuprofen like candy.

Occasionally somebody in the sports media will note that guys like Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens are still playing baseball into their 40s, but those guys are getting paid millions to swing a bat or throw a ball. It simply doesn't compare to the energy and physical stress that goes into fight training. Couture is an extremely special athlete. Maybe Bernard Hopkins could be placed in the same category, but considering the level at which Couture is competing, he has to be considered a historically great athlete.