Couture and Nogueira Headline UFC 102 on Saturday Night

Sports Betting News - August 29th, 2009 - Written by Scott

The main event at UFC 102 is sure to be a great war.   Randy "The Natural" Couture is set to battle Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira in what is slated to be a great fight.  This must see fight is scheduled for Saturday, August 29 and can be seen on pay-per-view.  The fight is scheduled to take place at the Rose Garden Arena in Portland, Ore. These two former champions, who have never fought before, are both looking to make there way back to the top and win back the Title.  Couture will have a challenge on his hands.  He is up against a much younger and more experienced opponent in Nogueira.  It would be a great motivation for Couture if he can bounce back after his loss to Brock Lesnar.  He does have big fight experience though.  In thirteen of his last fourteen fights, he has either defended or fought for the title.

Before he began fighting, Randy was in the US Army for six years where he wrestled and did a little boxing.  Couture has a record of 16-9-0 and 9 of these victories were by submission or knockout.   He is also one of only two men to win Championships in two weight classes. The 6'2" 220 pound fighter, who is 46 years old, will have to utilize his strong wrestling background and match his opponent's great stamina  to contend with the younger Nogueira.  Couture had this to say about his bout with Nogueira. "Antonio is one of the most dynamic submission fighters in our sport. He is very tenacious and durable. I have studied and admired many of his fights and even sported the Anaconda choke in the Van Arsdale fight after watching him pull it off."

The 33 year old Nogueira (6'3" 240 pounds) will come after Couture with his strong Ju-Jitsu and boxing background.  He brings a very impressive resume with a record of 31-5-1.  The fighter from Brazil is also coming into this bout with a chip on his shoulder as he also tries to bounce back from his previous fight loss to Frank Mir.  Nogueira has won seven of his last nine fights and 20 of his 31 victories have been by submission.

Couture is the favorite to win this fight according to Bodog.com.  Couture currently stands at -190.  The underdog, Nogueiro is at +150.  This matchup is definitely going to be an all out battle.  As with all UFC events, this one is not to be missed.

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