Also known as “Captain America” by his adoring fans, the great Randy Couture more often goes by “The Natural,” a nickname earned by dispatching some of the world’s most formidable fighters in the heavyweight and light heavyweight divisions over more than a decade of top level MMA competition. Couture first burst onto the MMA scene when he debuted for the UFC at UFC 13 in 1997, and ever since he went on to win the UFC Heavyweight Championship at UFC Ultimate Japan that same year, the charismatic fan favorite has put together one of the most impressive resumes in the history of the sport.

For a man of extraordinary athletic prowess, Couture’s most striking physical attribute is his longevity. “The Natural” did not even begin sanctioned mixed martial arts competition until well into his thirties, and it was not immediately apparent that one of the sport's all-time greatest fighters was in the making in his earliest professional bouts. But as Couture remained in the sport’s upper echelons throughout most of his forties, engaging in grueling five round title affairs as a matter of course, his renown continually grew until he was universally recognized as a legend. Though he frequently entered the cage against opponents half his age, Couture defeated a who’s who of MMA elites throughout his career, including Vitor Belfort (twice), Kevin Randleman, Pedro Rizzo (twice), “The Iceman” Chuck Liddell, “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” Tito Ortiz, Tim Sylvia, Gabriel Gonzaga, and Mark “The Hammer” Coleman, winning the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship twice and holding the Heavyweight Championship three times.

Before entering the world of professional mixed martial arts, Couture was a successful collegiate wrestler, having been an NCAA Division I All-American and a two-time NCAA Division I runner-up at Oklahoma State University. He was a three-time Olympic team alternate in 1988, 1992, and 1996, and he won a gold medal in Greco-Roman wrestling at the 1991 Pan American Games in Havana, Cuba. Best known for utilizing his Greco-Roman wrestling superiority in the cage, Couture is considered a pioneer of cage fighting tactics and one of the most skilled ground-and-pound fighters in the sport. His combination of relentless clinch work and “dirty boxing” against the fence has stifled a number of bigger, stronger and more explosive opponents. Yet Couture can also surprise fans by going toe-to-toe in heated battles, as in his wildly vicious three round Octagon war against "Minotauro" Nogueira, a fight more frenzied and intense than virtually any fan had expected.

Having forgotten more about cagefighting than most fighters will ever know, Couture is also widely recognized as one of the most savvy cage strategists in MMA, both in his own fights and for those he helps train out of his immensely successful Xtreme Couture gym based in Las Vegas. An occasional analyst for the UFC and other outlets, Couture has also shown a knack for off-the-cuff handicapping, correctly calling a number of winners on the air prior to major contests. A self-proclaimed gym rat who revels in picking up new tricks of the trade, Couture is one of the most knowledgeable MMA minds on the planet.

Along with his accomplishments inside of the Octagon, Couture remains one of the most widely recognized MMA athletes in the mainstream media culture, having starred in major Hollywood motion pictures such as Redbelt (2008) and The Expendables (2010). On June 24, 2006, during the live Ultimate Fighter 3 Finale which aired on Spike TV, Couture became only the fourth man to be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame. Following his knockout loss to Lyoto Machida in the second round, Randy Couture announced his retirement.