Bottom line — Couture is smart — dangerously smart. He knows that a younger fighter with better reach is putting him down if the match is a striking game. He also knows that he has a better wrestling game than Vera. Answer: keep him locked up and stay on him; this way Vera cannot take advantage of his lethal kicks.
Round 1: Vera tries to explode on Couture from the start and Randy puts him on the cage and basically keeps him there the whole round. Couture wants Vera on the ground but Brandon is excellent at takedown defense. Round 1 finishes mostly uneventful.
Round 2: Again Couture has Vera on the cage but the ref keeps seperating them. About halfway through, Vera lands a serious kick into Couture’s ribs that staggers him. Vera uncharacteristically does not follow up on it and winds up on the cage again. Gotta wonder if Vera’s respect for Couture includes some fear.
Round 3: Final round and Vera again puts his kicks to work, going at the same sore spot in the right set of Couture’s ribs. Again, he does not go in for the kill. Couture locks up on the cage, but Vera manages to get a takedown with a full mount. He makes very few strikes during the mount and fails at a submission attempt. The fight finishes with both men on their feet; a short exchange and the round ends.
Decision: the judges unanimously give it to Couture and Vera goes and sulks outside of the ring. Couture clearly did his homework on Vera. He said it himself that it was not the most exciting fight, but he did what he had to. Before the fight Vera quoted the old adage “to be the man, you have to beat the man.” I guess Vera knows what he did not do. I personally do not agree with the decision, but I am also not getting paid to say who won a fight.
I’m available to settle our agreement next week.
EDITOR NOTE (11/15/09): Looking around the net, it seems that I am not the only one that disagrees with the judges, but as Akuma said to me last night, “You gotta win your fight — do not let it go to decision.” Couture knew the way things were going that the judges would go with the favorite. Vera gave the fight away, despite what I think of things. Also gotta say that I lost some respect for Vera due to his very juvenile behavior after the ruling. You wanted this fight — you gave mad respect to Couture in and out of the ring; shake that man’s hand and get a rematch. Instead you sulk in a corner like a child. Be mad at the judges, not Randy Couture.
