The UFC officially announced this week that Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira and Frank Mir would be coaching teams on the eighth season of the Ultimate Fighter reality series. Many bloggers are up in arms over the selections for various reasons that range from tying up another title picture to explaining that the show is near death as far as appeal to MMA fans. The ratings would certainly indicate a drop-off of the show’s popularity over the years, and the coaching selection will tie up the Heavyweight title for a lengthy amount of time while the UFC tries to figure out who will move into the contention spot. What’s the problem with The Ultimate Fighter and with the news that “Big Nog” and Mir will battle it out for the title?

To answer the question, let me reference a couple of opinions from Fightlinker and Bloody Elbow and weigh in my own opinion. Fightlinker had this to say:

Let’s get something straight: a fight between Frank Mir and Big Nog is barely interesting enough to carry a PPV on its own, let alone an entire season of TUF. As for the argument that TUF exposure is a great way for Nog to become popular, that’s ass backwards thinking. Sticking a relatively unknown guy on TUF is just going to result in less people giving a shit about it. And it’s not like Nog just needs a showcase for his shining personality. The guy looks / acts like a big lumbering Frankenstein. For all the excitement he creates in the ring, he’s duller than matte paint in real life.

And don’t even get me fucking started on Frank Mir … Frank Mir, who everyone continues to say is “back.” This, despite the fact that UFC virgin Brock Lesnar nearly smashed his face through the canvas. Despite the fact that his only ‘convincing’ recent win was against a kickboxer who tried to out-sub him. I know MMA fans have the memory of sea amoebae, but was it really that long ago that a Krispy Kreme sponsored Mir waddled into the octagon to get easily annihilated by Brandon Vera?

I would definitely agree that Nogueira vs. Mir isn’t a main event that can carry a pay-per-view for the simple fact that Nogueira is fairly unknown to the casual fanbase and Mir is on the return track back to the title. I will say that I was one of those people on board to seeing Nogueira gets some exposure to boost his draw, but in thinking about it over the past couple of months and with the recent TUF season’s lackluster ratings and overall dullness, exposure for Nogueira probably wouldn’t be significant.

Bloody Elbow’s Luke Thomas had this to add:

For the record, I think this season is terrible and that's with two coaches who are good on camera, legitimate MMA stars and generally amiable and funny guys. If this format can't even work with them at the helm, I seriously doubt Mir and Nogueira is going to be any better (or even as good).

Look, the show - in its current format - has jumped the shark. I think there are a host of reasons for this, but part of it is that the talent well has run dry. If the UFC were able to space seasons further apart, they might be able to draw on more mature and developed talent. But they're running this machine into the ground and I don't think they've been able to cull the kind of talent they need consistently to make the show interesting.

In fact, the coaches' celebrity status used to be an ancillary benefit. TUF was originally and almost exclusively about the developing fighters. And when the show first started, there were a lot of up-and-comers to choose from. But between the pacing of the seasons and the growth of MMA leading to other organizations snatching up talent, there just isn't that much left to go around. Mir and Nogueira, despite being two of my favorite fighters, aren't going to change that dynamic.

Luke makes a good point that the talent outside of the UFC that they are able to pull from has decreased substantially. I’ve thought about this myself, and it seems that ProElite and some of the promotions overseas are grabbing up some of that talent. The ongoing debate on what fighters should get from their contracts and the restrictions in the Zuffa contracts probably doesn’t help, and it could be a small deterrent as well.

One reason I believe the series has lulled in excitement is due to the coaches really not having a beef with each other. While the comedy of both coaches is a pleasant relief from the dull tension that sometimes plagues the series, it isn’t a Tito vs. Shamrock angry tension that created some of the higher ratings for the series. Right now however, I don’t believe a heated rivalry between coaches would help the show at all.

In the end, a combination of both opinions is probably the biggest reason why this next season won’t do much better. Nogueira’s personality isn’t exactly flowing with exuberance, and putting Mir and Nogueira together will probably be less eventful than this season. Add in the fact that fighter talent has dropped off outside the UFC due to other promotions signing them to contracts, it just doesn’t bode well for the show.

In my opinion, The Ultimate Fighter is just a lame duck. I’ve watched it for multiple seasons and have usually been excited to see the fights during the next week’s show, but as of late, I could care less what really has been happening on the show. Some people may live for drama that involves a can of chew and lime juice, but who really gives a shit? I think Dana White’s new format ideas need to come sooner rather than later.

One of the things I’ve disliked about the WEC is the fact that the promotion has continued to carry the heavier middleweight and light heavyweight weight classes. Dana White suggested in an article over at the Canadian section of Yahoo! Sports on Saturday that Zuffa may be heading toward taking those divisions out of the WEC and merging them with the UFC’s own divisions.

White says the UFC has no plans to introduce a 145-pound weight class. “That’s why we bought the WEC (World Extreme Cagefighting).”

In fact, he said they are going to take steps to make the two circuits more distinct. “We’re going to make the WEC the smaller weights and the UFC will be the heavier weights. We’ll probably take some of the guys in the higher weights, the champions over there and bring them into UFC. We’re still trying to figure that out.”

WEC features 135-(bantamweight) and 145-pound (featherweight) weight classes as well as 155, 170, 185 and 205. The UFC has 155, 170, 185, 205 and heavyweight.

I like this move by the UFC and Dana White. Not only will Paulo Filho be moving over the promotion, but he’s probably going to be pushed up to the Light Heavyweight division after having massive problems with performance after cutting weight in the Middleweight division. His grappling should be dangerous against the divisional opponents in the UFC, and he’s arguably one of the most dangerous fighters on the ground in the world.

Brian Stann could also be an addition to the Ultimate Fighter Season 8. An Iraqi war hero on the show will get tons of exposure the American public and likely grab a huge following due to his duties in the military from members of the armed services within that same demographic. I’m a bit sick of hearing his story, but we all know the UFC will exploit it.

The rest of the fighters in those weight classes would likely make cannon fodder for upcoming talent in those divisions, or possibly make their way into the mid-echelon of those divisions in the UFC. I don’t think Doug Marshall can hang in the UFC, but Chael Sonnen could effectively dominate the lower level fighters at middleweight. Regardless, I’m not too keen on seeing those fights at this point.

Dana White had an interesting appearance on TSN's Off the Record in promoting UFC 83's main event in Canada. The show features an up front profile on Dana White in which he answers some questions, a panel in which he fires back at critics, and a quick-fire Q&A session from the host of the show. Not only was it entertaining to see White on his heels at times, but we got some solid answers on some of the issues we've wanted to know about for some time. See the entire show here... Props to MMAMania.com for the heads up.

The rundown...

• Is Dana White the star of the UFC? Dana doesn't believe so, and he mentioned Chuck Liddell as being unable to go anywhere without being mobbed by a crowd. 
• Building a brand over building fighting? The UFC was built as a brand, and Dana mentions how competition in this arena has failed, and everyone has their opinions of how he acts, but the business is still very successful. “UFC wasn't allowed on PPV, and porn was allowed on PPV” referencing the early days of the UFC, White was able to get those things to happen later on, testament to his drive and successful work ethic. 
• Marketability and reality vs. entertainment? Dana mentions that reality is better than the scripts that the WWE uses. When upsets happen, rematches, drama, and the elements that can create a prime atmosphere for marketing a fighter. 
• Was PRIDE buyout a mistake? No, they got Wanderlei Silva, other PRIDE fighters, and the video library. Got rid of their top competitor.
• A change in physiques when PRIDE fighters came over? Dana did not dismiss that steroids could have been the cause of this due to non-testing in Japan. 
• Why is it better for fighters to be clean? Careers last longer, mentally and emotionally stable.

The panel...

According to Adam Swift at MMAPayout.com, Dana White has recently began to focus more of his time on fighter relations than he had been previously giving to it. Joe Silva remains the VP of Talent Relations for Zuffa, but Swift is reporting that Dana White is now becoming much more involved in that area of the business. The article points at Couture's resignation from the promotion as being the primary cause to the refocusing of his priorities in the business.

Did Couture's resignation have a profound effect on the current status between Zuffa and its fighters? Dana White seems to think that the relationships between the promotion and its fighters has been degrading, and it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that the theory is very true. Within the last year, the heavyweight division could very well be the easiest target for these problems.

Andrei Arlovski, Tim Sylvia, and Randy Couture are all done with the UFC in some capacity right now in their careers. Arlovski is rumored to have signed with any and all promotions in the North American market right now, but nothing has been confirmed and the UFC is still talking to him. Tim Sylvia left the promotion on good terms, but did state after his bout with Frank Mir that he was unhappy with his pay compared to Brock Lesnar's purse for his loss. Sylvia has stated his displeasure with the promotion from time to time over the years as well.

The most significant loss to the promotion was Randy Couture, who spontaneously resigned from the promotion during a film shoot in South Africa. Unfortunately for fans and Couture, Couture isn't exactly allowed to simply resign from a contract, and we are now faced with the upcoming legal battle between Zuffa and Couture. Regardless of the legal hassles, one of the main points that Couture stated was the cause of the resignation from the promotion was the lies that Lorenzo Fertitta and Dana White had told him, along with the numbers of his contract compared to his current status within the promotion. Couture is the UFC Heavyweight Champion, and his argument was that his pay was “disrespectful” compared to what he's done for the promotion.

In a sense, poor fighter relations could be part of the problem with the recent departures, and White wants to make sure that his talent pool doesn't continue to depart. Respect and treatment of the fighters has been a focus of the problems with Zuffa lately, and this move by White should only improve those aspects of the promotion. Overall, I like the move. White moves from dealing with the business side of the promotion back to getting in the “trenches” of pleasing fighters, maintaining communication, talking with managers and agents, and hopefully grabbing some fresh new talent. In any case, it definitely can't hurt the promotion.

Fedor isn’t a real fighter, he’s a complete joke.

“He’s fighting middleweights and guys who have absolutely no business fighting – and he’s looking like s*** doing it.

“It’s 2008 and he hasn’t had a real fight since 2005. I don’t care about what he did in PRIDE years ago - he can’t live with anyone in the top five in the UFC and that’s why he’s not here.

“He’s not in the UFC because if he was he couldn’t avoid real competition like he’s been doing for years now.

If we look at Fedor's record today, it doesn't look overly impressive due to where many of those fighters went after the years kept passing by. At the time of some of those fights though, many of the men he fought were highly regarded as some of the best Heavyweights in the world, and that does count for something in his current ranking.

Fighting Lindland, who is a Middleweight, is definitely not going to help your potential to keep that ranking, but I'll ask this as I have asked others in the past. Can Matt Lindland beat some of the top 10 heavyweights in the world? I think so. What other middleweights fought Fedor? That's right, Dana. Making more broad statements based on one fight that Fedor fought, it never fails.

The argument that he has fought nobody applies today if you look at where those fighters are, but the fact of the matter is that Fedor still defeated his opponents in the present time and still did so quickly. People consider the Coleman fights complete garbage due to his age, and they could be right, but Coleman's style is still similar to what many wrestlers may try to implement against Fedor. Especially in a ring environment where Couture could find himself.

I'm still a heavy believer in the notion that if a fighter can manage to rattle off the amount of consecutive wins that Fedor has done, you can't really make an argument that he's "not a real fighter". Dana simply needs to avoid these questions, and cut the amount of crap that he manages to spit out when it comes to Fedor Emelianenko. Eventually, UFC veterans will find themselves in front of "The Last Emperor", and I honestly believe that fans will find out how masterful Fedor's transition game really is.

After seeing what seems like hundreds of rankings online, Dana White has decided that the UFC may consider making their own. He confirmed the notion in a Q&A with Mark Gilbert at the Sun. White even mentions that people would most likely say that their rankings are biased, and I’m going to be the first one to say it. They will be biased.

First and foremost, the rankings won’t include any international stars that are not with the UFC. Obviously, this list will be for UFC fighters only. This would skew the rankings in a way that would have many fighters higher than actual rankings from other websites that consider all fighters in the MMA world. Obviously, that is something that is going to happen, and I can deal with that problem. It’s a ranking system for one specific promotion.

The real problem lies in the evidence of how the UFC handles matchups. It’s obvious that the UFC is moving fighters around for matchups in order to get the most bang for their buck. Fights that pit two rivals against one another, or title fights that pit a popular fighter against a guy that maybe doesn’t deserve the shot quite yet happen more often than they should. It happens on a consistent basis in mixed martial arts, and especially in the UFC.

So, who would undoubtedly benefit from the UFC rankings? Chuck Liddell would most certainly. Not only does his popularity play a big factor in where he stands in the division, but it also gets him bigger fights and propels him in the title picture even with losses. I’m sure the UFC will have him ranked #2 or #3 when he logically should be in the middle of the pack at #5 or #6. Even that is up for argument within the community.

The article at MMAJunkie.com that talks about the interview also mentions that the rankings would have to consider competition outside the UFC. As we all know, Dana White has downplayed PRIDE fighters and PRIDE significantly, so we can almost guarantee discrepancies in the rankings there.

Bottom line is that the UFC shouldn’t undertake a ranking system. It’ll just make more controversy over why certain fighters are ranked this way when it’s obvious that they are a lower rank. I can only imagine that Chuck Liddell will be the first fighter people see as legitimately ranked too high. The rankings will have more factors than performance. The popularity factor shouldn’t be accounted for, and it most likely will be a huge factor to justify matchups.

Some interesting news surfaced during an interview regarding the new expansion efforts of the UFC this week. Specifically, the UFC has decided to move into Scotland as they continue to make a push toward Europe. There is only one problem with the expansion. It isn't exactly what many people expected. Rumors have circulated for the last year that the UFC was making steps to either make a splash in the Japanese market, or continue pushing south of England into France, Italy, and Germany. Instead, the UFC has decided to move north into Scotland. Is this bad news for the UFC's expansion efforts, or just another base for the UFC to hit it big?

Surprisingly, Scotland is not a bad choice for an area of the world that the UFC wants to profit from. Glasgow and Aberdeen seem to be two MMA havens in the country, and Scottish fighters primarily battle it out in local promotions or in U.K. promotions. It's only ideal that the UFC begin to pick up on another nationality of brawlers to excite casual fanbases. Overall, not a bad move for the UFC, and it will also have implications down the road if people in the business of television have their ears to the grindstone.

European expansion halts

One of the biggest reasons that the expansion talk has halted when it comes to moving south of England is advertising dollars and costs. The UFC has done fairly well in creating a face for the UFC in England with Michael Bisping. They've also used local talent to bring in crowds, and have been able to bring big name battles to the region. Not only have they held events in England, but also in Belfast, and now moving into Scotland. The UFC doesn't want to stop a good thing. Sellouts give them money, but not enough money to supplement their costs of bringing fighters and staff to England, and advertising in a new market that may not know what the UFC is all about.

Costs are the main culprit here. Costs are what cause the expansion of many companies to halt until better things come along or the seas calm. In the UFC's case, the fish in the sea need to become more interested in what's on the surface. The means to that end is the television market.

Television markets plague the UFC's expansion

Television is the key to the expansion of nearly any sport. Get people to see what it is and associate a name with a visual representation of it. It's the fastest way to get name recognition and brand the UFC onto the combative sport of MMA. Of course, this is a tad different in England.

Television markets seem to be much different in markets outside of the U.S. for many promoters. They usually aren't welcome unless they are highly profitable ventures. The UFC has seen the toughest market in Japan, and they could be seeing more of the same in the UK. How can the UFC remedy that problem? Continue to sellout arenas, and try to gain some key sponsors that are in relation to the region. The more you can draw to yourself, the better it is to gain attention from the bigger dogs.

Stretching itself thin

Instead of focusing big expansion, the UFC is now focusing on moving into a small market that is relatively close to one that they are already somewhat familiar with. Scotland also has a good size MMA fanbase and should sellout the card easily. It's a smart move because they won't spread themselves thin on funds due to the exorbent cost of trying to move into a market that may not care about MMA. That could risk a lot of money for little gain.

Eventually with enough sellouts and enough exposure to the UK media, the UFC will have potential suitors. Before a TV or PPV deal can be made, the UFC will have to continue to show its worth in the UK. Once the UFC can turn a profit on another continent and rely on it to help drive the Zuffa machine, expansion into the other areas of Europe will surely be much easier.

The UFC's Middleweight division has had a rough time getting support in the last few months. Anderson Silva single handedly destroyed the competition by defeating Travis Lutter, former Pancrase champion Nathan Marquardt, and UFC champion Rich Franklin twice to clear out a division that long needed some competition. Competition is exactly what they got, but the UFC may not have anticipated the complete and utter domination of the upper-echelon of Middleweights. Flash to present day, we see a perceived impossibility of defeating the current champion, Anderson Silva. Of course, the UFC is now trying to remedy the problem of a stagnant division by convincing former PRIDE Middleweight and Welterweight champion Dan Henderson to drop down in weight to fight "The Spider".

The great matchup between the Greco-Roman wrestler with heavy hands and the well-rounded, destructive striking with a black belt in jiu-jitsu seems like a classic matchup that could turn into a nuclear war. Great ground skills from both competitors, and both combatants have proved that their striking can end a fight with one precision blow like a cruise missile. After this battle of two great fighters, we will either continue to have a stale Middleweight division of competitors that can't give Silva a run for his money, or we will crown a new champion and set up a trail of fights for Silva to regain a title fight. A picture that is reminiscent of Rich Franklin situation since his first defeat.

Matt "The Law" Lindland enters the picture

The recent news that Matt Lindland had entered talks with Dana White in the UFC was no surprise to fans that have been following the promotion. Lindland, after all, could be a solution in terms of challenging the Middleweight champion. The combination of his Greco-Roman wrestling, strong clinchwork, and some of the best top control that the MMA world has seen would definitely cause a stir in Silva's mind as to how he could end the fight quickly. 

There have been "knocks" on Lindland's skills in the past. Top control styles haven't been globally accepted as the most exciting way to win a fight. People boo'ed Sean Sherk's performance over Hermes Franca, and fans have done the same to Lindland's style as well. As we've seen from the typical matchups that the UFC puts together, matching up styles that don't seem to scream excitement are usually non-existent until a title fight or a contender battle. It is in the best interest of the UFC to keep those fights under wraps until there seems to be a need for them.

Obstacles between the UFC and Lindland

A few obstacles are making this type of deal seem unlikely, and there are many news sources indicating that same sentiments. First, Dan Henderson and Matt Lindland are very good friends and training partners. Both fighters are also of the same type of style with the only difference being in Henderson's powerful hands. Not only will they most likely avoid fighting each other if Henderson happens to defeat Silva and take the crown, but both fighters may counter each other's styles into a back and forth boring ground fight.

It's unfortunate because Lindland's style can counter that of an aggressively striking Anderson Silva. Not only does Lindland's clinchwork and takedown abilities hurt Silva's counter to it, but it could be a problem for Silva in stopping Lindland's top control.

There is, however, one more issue that always seems to rear its ugly head when talk of Matt Lindland comes up. The feud between Dana White and Matt Lindland is the key reason why talks have never begun before this stage of degradation in the Middleweight division. Rumors all over the MMA community have surfaced over the past few years regarding the feud. An incident in which Lindland wore an unapproved sponsored t-shirt began the feud. Whether or not that is the truth hasn't completely materialized in the media. The obvious choice would be the IFL's courtship of Lindland to coach a team in the IFL, a problem that Dana White has had with other UFC veterans such as Pat Miletich. Whatever the reason is, Lindland also has the problem of being inactive and asking for a significantly large salary because of his status in world rankings.

Will we see "The Law" in the UFC?

Unless the UFC and Lindland can get past the issues regarding the future matchups for Lindland, his asking price, their feud, and the fact that one of his best friends and training partners may actually reign atop the Middleweight division, the UFC may not have a need for Lindland's services. Look for Lindland to continue sitting outside the UFC looking in until there is a significant swing in the title picture. It may be worth another look if Silva defeats Henderson, but for now, Lindland is only a pipe dream.

If we do see Lindland in the UFC, it will be a miraculous turn of events by Dana White and the UFC. It will be interesting to see how they plan to fit him into the division.

The weekend brought some good mixed martial arts action and some unexpected news from the UFC's most legendary Heavyweight fighter, Randy Couture. During an interview at the HDNet Fights event, Couture stated that his actual fight contract would expire in July of 2008 and his employment contract would expire in October of 2008. The video of the interview is here. Not only did this send the many of the MMA forums into a frenzy, but it sent many hardcore MMA fans who have wanted to see both of these fighters tangle into a giddy movement that was reminiscent of a sugar high.

The one question that should be asked, however, is whether or not that fight will actually happen. There are a number of questions that pop up into one's head when thinking about the overall situation that revolves around such a clash of two titans. The mess gets more complicated with the current state of both fighters as well. Here's a list of questions that we've batted around here for quite some time:

1. Does M-1 sign Couture for an one-fight deal and give him a shot at Fedor? Do they have the marketing and promoting capacity to make huge dollars off of an event that is a non-UFC event in the United States?
   
   
   
2. Does Dana White really let Randy Couture go out and produce one of the most intriguing matchup of the year? Does he allow M-1 to actually put that type of megafight on?
   
   
   
3. Can Randy really leave his contract after October?
   
   
   
4. Is there a chance that Dana White will co-promote with M-1 just to capitalize off of Randy Couture and Fedor?
   
   

All of these questions have extensive answers, but can be shortened with simple explanations. Wrapping your head around the whole situation in order to really determine who can make out the best on this sort of fight can be a serious drag on someone's afternoon. We'll take a stab at it anyways...

Earlier this week, Dana White was a guest on the Dave Carmichael show, a sports talk radio show in Sacramento. According to many people in the industry, Dave has a good reputation with Dana White and has been able to get some great interviews for several years from Dana White. A few interesting little tidbits came up in the interview that would make the drama queens of the MMA fanbase go on a gossip run through the "bitches in beauty salons". Specifically, comments were made that hinted at some of the future possibilities in the UFC's heavyweight division. Let's speculate and analyze some of these rumors.

Dana White stated during the interview that he had spoken with Randy Couture as recently as the night before and that the fans should "stay tuned" for any happenings with that situation. He also mentioned that we should "never say never" when it comes to an eventual Randy Couture vs. Fedor Emelianenko showdown. Very interesting.

My first connection between both statements is the fact that in order for White to set a matchup between Randy Couture and Fedor Emelianenko in the UFC, Couture would have to once again be on the same page as the organization and his own contract. He would have to agree to actively be fighting for the organization. White didn't comment on the Couture situation, but stating that we should "never say never" in the concept of a Fedor vs. Couture showdown would mean big things in the arena of Couture's contract.

Is it possible that Dana White has offered to re-negotiate Couture's contract? If the champion was going to come back and defend his belt in the UFC, I would think so. White has also stated in the past that he has never said "No" to Randy Couture, hinting at the possibility that Couture could ask for more money or a re-negotiation. Also, this allows Couture to accept a title bout with Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, a fight that many fans have seen as a potential danger to Couture. This sets up a lot of possibilities if Couture decides to only fight his remaining fights on his contract. There are other speculative possibilities.

Couture could potentially decide that he will retire, but Zuffa could accelerate his contract by creating the Sylvia vs. Nogueira fight for the title. Couture could loom in the background waiting for the UFC to try to "rent" Fedor Emelianenko from M-1 Global for a superfight in the UFC that would have no implications on the title picture. This same scenario could be done in any number of ways as well. We could see Couture simply fighting his two remaining fights and trying to get Fedor for a retirement fight. The possibilities are endless, but in the end, the actual probability of the fight happening is fairly low. With rumors circulating that Fedor could be fighting Barnett in Newark by early next year, surely Fedor's management will try to field offers by the UFC if they so happen to come knocking.

The one factor that is much different with the current situation is that Fedor is with an organization that has met his every demand. The only factor is a negotiation with another organization is money. We all know that the UFC has money. This may actually go down as a much smoother deal if it actually happens. Of course, the UFC runs many risks by bringing an outside fighter in to fight one fight. There are obviously reasons why Zuffa tries to not do this type of "renting" of fighters. If Fedor comes in, beats Couture, people can arguably say that the best of the best in the heavyweight division isn't in the UFC. Right now, you can make an argument that the best does sit in the UFC. Simply put, it can tone down the credibility of the strength of the division. I would disagree, but Fedor knocking off the top UFC Heavyweight fighter and having destroyed Nogueira in previous fights, we can only lay claim to Tim Sylvia being a man who could beat him.

Of course, there are many more possibilities. I won't go through every single rumor or possibility that could happen, but the mere fact that White has even hinted at the possibility that Couture could be back, and then to hint at the fact that it is possible that the UFC may try to "rent" Fedor. Very exciting stuff, although I doubt any of this will ever happen. The most probable item is the fact that Couture could come back to the Octagon. I could see that actually happening for the mere fact that we know the Zuffa details to his contract. I think Couture will try to fulfill his contract. Hopefully we will see Nogueira vs. Couture because I believe Couture is pushing himself as the greatest even though he has yet to take on the granite chin and superior grappling of Nogueira.