10 fighters who feuded with the UFC

#1 Randy Couture

Randy Couture was sued by the UFC in 2007 and remains one of their greatest enemies today

Despite being a UFC Hall of Famer and generally being considered as one of the greatest UFC fighters of all time, Randy Couture is almost certainly the fighter who has had the bitterest feud with his former promoter. ‘The Natural’ was once considered one of the UFC’s go-to superstars – he was even a regular colour commentator after his initial 2006 retirement – but things went extremely sour in 2007.

Couture came out of retirement that year to defeat Tim Sylvia for the UFC Heavyweight title, and after a successful defence against Gabriel Gonzaga, he decided he wanted to fight PRIDE Heavyweight champion Fedor Emelianenko in his next fight. But the UFC couldn’t come to terms with the Russian – and so rather than fight another contender, Couture decided to “resign” from the UFC.

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Naturally, lawsuits from both sides came flying in; the UFC sued Couture for breach of contract, while Couture claimed he hadn’t been paid correctly for his fights with Sylvia and Gonzaga and also had rival promotion HDNet Fights file a suit to attempt to decide his contractual status with the UFC. Things got so bad that Couture was banned from cornering his team’s fighters when they competed in the Octagon.

Eventually – when it was looking like the UFC had the upper hand in the legal battle – Couture decided to return to the UFC, mending fences with Dana White and signing a new contract. It looked like everything was rosy and when ‘The Natural’ finally decided to retire in 2011 following a loss to Lyoto Machida, the UFC offered him a spot as an analyst on their live shows with Fox that were beginning in 2012.

Instead though – and apparently without letting the UFC know, drawing the fury of White – Couture signed with the UFC’s biggest rival, Bellator MMA, as a coach on their new Spike TV reality show. Since then Couture and the UFC have firmly been at odds, with ‘Captain America’ now a big supporter of the attempt to enforce boxing’s Ali Act onto MMA – a move that would greatly damage the UFC’s business model.

At this stage, to see Couture back in the UFC fold would be more surprising than seeing Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov mend fences.

About the author

Scott is a veteran MMA writer with over two decades of experience, including his ongoing tenure in Sportskeeda, which began seven years ago. He has written over 3000 pieces for the organization, while also covering football. Before joining Sportskeeda, Scott wrote articles for websites like The Oratory and Inside Pulse MMA.

Scott has a degree in history, which drives his research skills and helps him compile accurate information. His long stint in the field helps Scott provide a clear take on important topics, such as the criticism of promotions regarding fighter pay. While he feels fighters deserve a bigger revenue share, he doesn’t want MMA to suffer with purse-split issues.

Scott’s work has been previously reshared by the former UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman. He uses credible sources, such as the UFC’s official website, during the writing process.

His dedication to MMA writing won him the Feature Writer of the Month award for Sportskeeda in November 2021.

Outside of work, Scott likes to go to the gym, walk his dog, and travel.

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Edited by Vikshith R