The first real chapter in what became the legend of Randy Couture went down at UFC 15 on Oct. 17, 1997.
There are many reasons why “The Natural” is a UFC Hall of Famer. He was the first man to win UFC titles in different weight classes, and his five combined UFC title reigns — three at heavyweight, two at light heavyweight — remains a company record. Couture also created one of the all-time great moments in UFC history when he came out of retirement to defeat Tim Sylvia and win the heavyweight belt at UFC 68 at age 43.
Couture made his MMA debut at UFC 13, winning two fights in one night to claim the heavyweight tournament. But his first real legendary moment was he scored what at the time was considered a major upset of an undefeated Vitor Belfort at UFC 15, which was held in Bay St. Louis, Miss.
And it only made sense Couture spoke to Burt Watson on a new edition of Legend 2 Legend about the bout, which Couture won via TKO in 8:16.
A young Belfort was called “The Phenom” for a reason. He was considered a superstar in waiting, having won all four of his previous fights, including three in the UFC, via TKO or KO, with the longest bout lasting 77 seconds.
But Belfort made Couture, who walked first, wait in the cage for 10 minutes before officials had to order him out of his locker room. And in his head, that told Couture that Belfort was doubting himself.
“I’m in the cage, they play the entrance music, and nobody comes out of the tunnel,” Couture told Burt Watson. “And I stayed in the cage for about 10 minutes. And there was no opponent. … And in my mind right away I thought ‘he’s just scared.’ This is something that somebody who is scared to come out and compete would do. That’s what I thought.
“That’s an old boxing trick, you freeze the guy out, you make him stand there and wait, and you get in his head that way. I thought it had the opposite effect. For me, in my mind, he was intimidated. He was scared.”
From there, the fight was on, and the result sent reverberations around the sport that was then known as “No Holds Barred.” After defeating Belfort, Couture then went out at UFC 19 and defeated Mark Coleman to win the heavyweight belt and claim the first of his five titles.
To hear more from Couture on one of the first truly legendary moments in UFC history, check out the video above.
Legend 2 Legend: Randy Couture thought Vitor Belfort ‘was intimidated’ at UFC 15
