“Ladies and gentlemen, one of the greatest champions in UFC history, Randy ‘The Natural’ Couture.” These were the words of Joe Rogan that ushered UFC Hall of Famer, Randy Couture from the octagon for the final time following a defeat to Chuck Liddell at UFC 57.

“This is the last time you’re going to see these gloves or these shorts in the octagon”, said Couture. ” I’m retiring tonight. I’d like to thank the fans for all their support. That’s it for me.”

In December 1997, at the age of 33, Randy earned his first Heavyweight title fight over kickboxer Maurice Smith.

On June 24th, 2006 Randy Couture was only the 4th fighter to be inducted into the UFC HAll of Fame.

On March 3rd, 2007 Randy Couture became the first man to win the UFC Heavyweight title 3 times with a dominating win over Tim Sylvia.

Randy continues to announce for UFC Pay Per Views, has begun an acting career ( he has a lead role in the MMA-themed “Redbelt“), and owns two Xtreme Couture MMA training centres.

Fighters have been using secluded fight camps for a long time. Muhammad Ali made the Deer Lake Camp famous in the 70’s, choosing to hide away to prepare for big fights. This is done for one reason – so the fighter can concentrate 100% on the task at hand. The fighters need to get away from distractions, both good and bad. That includes family as much as it includes drinking buddies. The fighter is looking to completely immerse themselves into an environment that is focused on a single event.

I can’t see any reason why secluded training wouldn’t improve a fighter’s chances of winning. Any fight team that dedicates that kind of time and sacrifices that much should increase their results. Talent and instruction are more valuable than seclusion and focus, but a big part of mixed martial arts is the fighter’s mental state, and this kind of setting can certainly give a fighter an edge – even if it’s only in his head.

I fully expect Rich Franklin to stand up against Anderson Silva at UFC 77 Hostile Territory. He knows that his jui-jitsu does not match up against Silva’s, and his best chance to beat the champ is to overpower him with aggression and hard strikes, whether they come from his hands or his feet.

If Franklin does take the fight to the ground early on, it will only occur if he gets a clean takedown for a favourable position.

Franklin doesn’t even want to be on top of him with Silva in full guard. Franklin is not known for an exceptional ground and pound game, even though his wrestling skills are good. Anderson Silva is as dangerous from his back as he is toe to toe. I suppose Franklin will have to take the fight to the ground once he suffers enough strikes to realize he has to try something else, or get knocked out.

Rich Franklin will have the hometown advantage over Anderson Silva at UFC 77: Hostile Territory LIVE on Saturday, October 20. These hometown fights (Georges St. Pierre is also getting one in Montreal in the spring) were earned and planned before the champions were knocked off their thrones. The events are planned in their respective hometowns as a reward for their careers in the UFC.

This may motivate Franklin a bit, but I don’t see it being any type of disadvantage for the experienced champion Silva. Some fighters may allow this situation to get into their head, but Silva doesn’t fit that description.

The truth is that Rich Franklin needs to bring it to Silva, and somehow overpower the expert striking abilities of the champ. I expect a comparatively quiet Cincinnati crowd during the main event of UFC 77; Franklin will need all the help he can get.

This fight is being promoted as the main event to UFC 78, a card which has received widespread initial disappointment from MMA fans. The rest of the card is a collection of up-and-comers or nobodies, which it would have to be to have a main event featuring Rashad Evans (10-0-1) and Michael Bisping (15-0). It’s not that these two guys can’t fight, but they should not be the main event of a UFC pay-per-view card.

This is Dana White pushing the Ultimate Fighter Series beyond its promotional limits. Just because these guys won first place on the show doesn’t mean that they should get billing like this. Neither one of these guys is top 5 in the UFC Light Heavyweight division, but T.V. time is more important I guess. I’m willing to go out on a limb and say that UFC 78 is not going to break any records for pay-per-view purchases.

Canada has a rich tradition in combat sports. Wrestling, boxing and martial arts flourish from coast to coast. Eventually, the UFC plans to come to Montreal to showcase former welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre in his native province. But can you name another Canadian UFC fighter?

Currently, there’s Patrick Cote, Joe Doerksen, Jonathan Goulet, Jeff Joslin, David Loiseau and Sam Stout. Heavy on the Quebecois side, no surprise there. But these seven Canucks represent a very small percentage of the hundreds of fighters on the UFC roster.

As much as Canadians love their combat sports, you won’t find a lot of world-class coaches and training facilities outside of Montreal. You will, however, find a network of MMA promotions like Edmonton’s MFC and, of course, BodogFight. You’ll also still find a disproportionate number of pro wrestlers, but that’s one tradition that has fallen on very hard times indeed.

Tim Sylvia’s success has come from his size and takedown defence. Despite being a member of Miletich Fighting Systems, he has used his size and kick-boxing skills to dominate most of his opponents. He keeps the fight standing, or gains a favourable position on opponents who attempt a takedown. Then he overpowers them with heavy strikes from his 263-pound, 6-foot-8 frame. It’s no secret that his ground skills are limited, which Frank Mir and Andrei Arlovski demonstrated with submission wins against him.

Sylvia’s record (23-3-0) shows that his submission skills are limited. Only two of his 23 wins have come by way of a chokehold, both occurring over six years ago. If Sylvia can’t beat down his opponent then he’s in some trouble, but most guys get beat down before they can get Sylvia off his feet. Tim Sylvia has taken “Thug” to a whole new level.

The reason that Fedor Emelianenko is the Yahoo pound-for-pound MMA favorite is because he is the most talented and most dominant fighter on the face of the earth. Emelianenko is the best Sambo fighter in the world, winning numerous national and world championships in the discipline. He has a host of international judo accomplishments and his only MMA loss came from a cut which stopped the fight. No man has ever handed him a beating in a mixed martial arts match.

He hasn’t fought since last April, and the apparent abandonment of Pride Fighting by its new owners has left his future up in the air. There has been talk about an Emelianenko / Couture superfight, but the UFC does not appear to be willing to pay Emelianenko what he’s worth. Many will never consider the UFC Heavyweight Champion as the true champ until Emelianenko steps into the octagon and competes.

Rich Franklin will not be able to stand up with one of the best strikers in mixed martial arts today, Anderson Silva. Franklin’s only real shot at beating the champion is to take the fight to the ground where he can control Silva and slowly try and soften him up with punches and elbows from a top position. This will be a difficult thing to achieve, as Silva’s takedown defense and balance are excellent.

If Franklin decides to trade blows he’ll need to land a big shot and stun the champ. If he ends up in a clinch, or at the end of one of Silva’s accurate kicks, his fate will be much like the first time he faced Silva. Franklin will have the hometown crowd behind him, but if he doesn’t get Anderson in a dominant position on the ground he’s in for a rough night.

The heavyweight bout at UFC 77 has former Heavyweight Champion Tim “The Maniac” Sylvia (25-3) looking to get back atop the heavyweight division against Brandon “The Truth” Vera (8-0). With Sylvia coming in at 6-foot-5 and 265 pounds, and possessing one of the best take-down defenses in the business, the undefeated mutli-disciplined Vera will have the test of his career on Oct. 20.

Sylvia had an impressive run of fights before he got caught with a right hand from Couture. There’s nothing that points to him not continuing to be dominant force in the heavyweight division. If Vera is able to chop down the Sylvia tree, he will be vaulted into the upper ranks of the UFC heavyweight division.

We can be sure of one thing; the two are not going to be holding anything back and both will be looking to end it early. I’ll take Sylvia and his experience in this one.