Like Father, Like Son, Naturally

While the Shamrocks and Gracies feud over who is the “First Family of MMA” like the Hatfields & McCoys, many MMA fans will point to the Couture clan as equally deserving of that

Second generation fighter Ryan Couture

honor.  Ironically enough, as a household which is known for its quiet humility, they’d probably be the last ones to lay claim to it.

But amidst a capacity crowd of near 2,500 at Sunday night’s Tuff-N-Uff amateur MMA event, at the Orleans Casino & Hotel in Las Vegas, NV, Ryan Couture, son of Randy “The Natural” Couture, took the family name one step farther down that path, as he scored a second-round submission win over Art Martinez of Team Fubar in the lightweight (155 lbs.) division

“I really enjoyed myself out there. . . I got to work my standing a little bit.  I got to show I’m pretty slick on the ground too.  I’m happy with the way it went,” Couture said after the match.

In the first round, Martinez had no problem pushing the attack on Couture, firing with hard punch combinations.  Couture tried to keep the distance with low kicks before the fight went to the ground.  From there, Couture worked for both a triangle choke and armbar, surviving a short slam by Martinez.

“I thought I’d get the tap with the triangle, but he was tough.  I kept debating back and forth between the arm or the triangle – I think if I’d have gone with one or the other, I would have got the tap.  But you live and learn.”

Round two opened up with a flying knee from Martinez, who followed up with a takedown attempt.  Couture was able to mount Martinez’, sinking his hooks in and claiming a submission victory by rear naked choke at the 29-second mark.

Ryan Couture feels his skill set differs drastically from his father's.

Couture’s Tuff-N-Uff win takes him to 2-0 as an amateur, as his debut match took place late last year at an amateur event in Bellingham, WA.

Carrying such a family name and deciding to compete in MMA, it’s inevitable that a certain parade of media buzz and hoopla would follow.  But this isn’t the first time that father and son have faced this scenario, as Ryan dealt with the same pressure during his high school wrestling career of following in the footsteps of his highly-decorated father.  As such, it should come as no surprise that the family has treated Ryan’s foray into MMA with the same discretion and humility.

“[Wrestling] was too hard of a sport to get in and feel pressure from me, especially with the accomplishments and things that I’ve always achieved, so I always stayed out of it.  If he was gonna wrestle, it had to be because he wanted to.  If he came to me with anything, I was always there, but I stayed away from coaching.  I wanted him to have the same passion and fun that I had, and didn’t want to be a distraction for him.  And I feel the same way about fighting,” said the elder Couture.

As for Ryan, he notes that although his own MMA aspirations and accomplishments will inevitably reflect on the family name, he’s perfectly comfortable with creating his own legacy.

“I’m doing this 100% because it’s something I’m passionate about, and that I enjoy.  Hopefully I’ll have my own legacy some day to look back on.  Obviously that’s going to be part of my dad’s legacy, and I’m proud of that too.  I’m 100% proud of everything he’s accomplished.  I can only hope to do a fraction of as much as he’s done for this sport.  Really, I don’t spend too much time thinking about that, because I’m doing this for me.  It’s something that feels right.”

If anything, Ryan’s sense of self-awareness may be the trait he’s inherited the most from his father.  Throughout his career, Randy, while being a world-class wrestler and six-time UFC champion, has continued to demonstrate an easygoing, assured confidence under even the most personal of public headlines.  As such, it should come as no surprise that even as comparisons between father and son come up, Ryan considers them more of a coincidence than a pre-ordained destiny.

“I definitely inherited a lot of personality traits from him.  I see it all the time.  Some of that has led to a similar world view.  I think we both think in similar terms.  But I feel like I’ve come to all these conclusions on my own.   I haven’t spent a ton of time sitting down and talking about it with him.  It’s all just kinda happened naturally,” he explained.

That “Natural” progression began almost three years ago, when Ryan was working as a bank teller in Bellingham, WA and training in MMA part-time.  He moved down to Las Vegas in late-2007, taking a job in the front office of Xtreme Couture and dedicating more time to training.  In November 2008, Ryan fought his first amateur MMA bout, winning by submission about two minutes into the first round.

“It was a hobby up there and it had to take a backseat to my day job. . . I’d wanted to compete at some point, but I wasn’t dead serious about it at that point.”

None of this is to say that the Couture’s aren’t having fun with making MMA the family business.  Randy’s wife Kim, herself a fighter who debuted under a barrage of media attention, noted that having both Ryan and Randy’s daughter, Aimee, at the gym has been a blessing both personally and professionally.

“The whole family dynamic, with Aimee working at the gym. . . Ryan’s one of my best training partners.  It’s fun because we go at each other pretty good.  It’s cool, because we have

Ryan Couture wins by submission in the second round.

Randy over there cheering for both of us,” she commented.

As for father and son training together, Kim noted “the first time they ever sparred, the whole gym was peeking out of the corner of their eye.  [Everyone] were sparring too, but nobody was really throwing punches, because they were just watching Randy and Ryan.”

For the night, Xtreme Couture went 3-1, as teammates Nick Fekete (heavyweight) and Kenny Marazolla (middleweight) also notched wins.  Marazolla, who spends his time between Xtreme Couture and Warrior Training, scored a first-round knockout over Ernesto Martinez, while the debuting Fekete went to a unanimous decision against Shawn Fyre.

Tuff-N-Uff amateur MMA action returns to the Orleans Casino & Hotel in Las Vegas, NV on March 27^th.

Legends Team Redeems at Tuff-N-Uff

With Valentine’s Day falling on a Saturday this year, Sunday night was alright for fighting, as Legends MMA fight team went 3-0 at Tuff-N-Uff’s February 15^th amateur MMA event, at the Orleans Hotel & Casino. Victor Henry, Christian Palencia, and Eddie Jackson all finished their opponents in dominating fashion.

Jackson’s drive for victory was equally personal and professional, as his previous Tuff-N-Uff match was a difficult loss to 185-pound Chance Torres (Xtreme Couture). Jackson, normally a welterweight, agreed to the match after his and Torres’ opponents dropped out at the last minute. This time, Jackson’s match at welterweight was secure, and redemption was the key word of the day.

Conversely, Henry and Palencia were making their Tuff-N-Uff debuts, and both were game to make a triumphant first impression.

“I’m feeling great. I’m excited to fight this guy. . . I’ve done my work at the gym. It’s the easy part now. Go in there and have fun,” said Henry at the weigh-ins.

For Palencia, his fight marked the end of a long road of recovery, as his last fight dates back to July 2007. Unfortunately, a string of injuries shortly thereafter prevented him from returning any sooner, but according to Palencia, that hiatus gave him time to mature as a fighter.

“My last two fights, I didn’t have a game plan. This time, I actually have a game plan, and now I just gotta do it. I got a Plan A, I got a Plan B. I pace myself a little bit better now, and I look more for weaknesses, instead of coming out and putting out everything I’ve got. . . Before, I would just come in there and be the same every day. I’m trying to fight smarter,” he reflected.

Victor Henry won by impressive first-round knockout

145 lbs. – Wayne Wrath (Nation Kenpo / The Pit) vs. Victor Henry (Legends MMA)

After the fight, teammate Chris Brady noted “At first, I was kinda scared, because dude was big and was throwing over Victor’s jab. But Victor saw an opportunity and capitalized on it. You can’t teach that. Victor is a tough kid and very talented. He’s gonna be a bad dude.”Victor Henry fired the first salvo of the match with a left, but Wrath was quick to retaliate with combos. Henry circled and looked for his shot, which came quicker than anyone expected, as a low right kick set up a wicked left high kick that sent Wrath crashing to the ground. Henry followed up with two hammerfists before being pulled off by the referee. The packed arena of 2,500 fans went bananas approval as Henry leaped onto the ropes with “kid-at-Christmas” hysteria. Victor Henry was awarded the win via KO at 21 seconds of the first round.

170 lbs. – Johnny Batres (Team Fubar) vs. Eddie Jackson (Legends MMA)

Coming out to Redman’s “Time 4 Sum Akshun,” Eddie Jackson could not have been more ready to get busy. This was the second match of the first round of a four-man welterweight tournament.

Round one started out like two bulls clashing, as Batres charged Jackson with full force. Jackson vied for control with a Muay Thai clinch and knees, but the two threw each other around the ring, both deadset on gaining the upper hand. Batres eventually forced a takedown, but Jackson escaped deftly, ending up with a standing front headlock in the corner. Batres continued to try and force the takedown, coming very close several times, but Jackson remained notably composed and unfettered.

Trainer Jimmie Romero said “I was yelling at him to rest there, because when you’re up on the corner like that, it’s all the other guy’s energy. Eddie didn’t want to try for the guillotine, because he couldn’t have slipped it in fast enough. It was better to let that guy expend his energy.”

Eddie Jackson kept control of his opponent throughout the match.

In round two, Jackson stunned Batres with an overhand right. Shortly thereafter, Jackson was on the receiving end of a groin shot that briefly stopped the action.

Upon the restart, Batres charged again, but Jackson deftly matador-stepped to the side. They ended up in the same corner position as in round one, but Jackson powered Batres to the ground, keeping the front headlock. Batres continued to strive for a single-leg takedown, but Jackson kept the front headlock, peppering body shots. The referee stopped the action and penalized Batres for holding the ropes. Again, Batres charged at the restart, only to rendezvous with a locomotive right hand to the face. Jackson went on to ground-and-pound on Batres to the end of the round.

Batres’ strategy finally caught up with him in round three, when, charging once again, Jackson delivered another right to the face. Batres dropped, followed by a pouncing Jackson, followed by a referee who pulled Jackson off for the TKO win at 0:08 of the third round.

Analyzing his fight, Jackson commented “he didn’t want to stand toe to toe and swing the hands. He figured by trying to keep me in the corner and go for the takedown, he was safer. I tried to get him off, but he was just bulldozing, so when he took me down, I just kicked him off me. Them wrestling classes are paying off at the gym!”

Jimmie Romero took particular pride in Jackson’s match, saying “I was real happy with his performance. He even used a butterfly sweep like I showed him two months ago.”

Jackson is expected to meet Joshua Morgan (CTKD) in the next tournament round. Morgan beat Michael Ryan McNamara (Nation Kennel) by split decision.

Christian Palencia was all business at Tuff-N-Uff

155 lbs. – Chaz Mulkey (Warrior Training) vs. Christian Palencia (Legends MMA)

This was the final match in the first round of an eight-man lightweight tournament.

Round one saw Palencia chasing Mulkey before getting the clinch and taking him down for top position. Mulkey was able to get to his feet, but Palencia slapped on a guillotine and forced him to the ground, quickly getting the tapout from top position at 1:09 of the first round.

Romero commented “after his teammates’ fights, it really pumped Christian up backstage. It was pretty impressive. He was calm, but he was ready to do business. We didn’t think he was going to get that submission off him, but it was just there, and it’s kinda hard not to take it when it’s just there like that.”

On the night in general, Jackson summarized “we cleaned house. Victor set the bar real high with that knockout, so when I came out, I knew I had to come with it. And Christian’s jiu-jitsu game is crazy, so you can’t be mad at that.”

Chris Brady was also scheduled to fight on this show, but due to injury, was forced to withdraw from competition and instead corner.

“I’ve never really gotten to corner guys and get them ready for fights, because I’m always fighting. So it’s good to get in the other position and support guys, instead of being the focus. It’s all about y’all. It’s important to do that and humble yourself, because now it’s got me hungry,” he commented.

Tuff-N-Uff amateur MMA action returns to the Orleans Casino & Hotel on March 27^th. Legends MMA representatives will be announced shortly.