We have brought back the popular MMATorch Roundtable feature. Most days we will publish a question followed by several staff members' answers. We will run several batches of staff responses to the following question over the next several days, and then introduce a new topic after that.
TODAY'S NEW TOPIC:
If Randy Couture beats Mark Coleman convincingly, what's your pick for Couture's next opponents? And Coleman?
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BRIAN SWEET, MMATORCH SPECIALIST
I see Couture getting Thiago Silva or maybe even some sort of superfight with Rich Franklin after the Coleman fight. Either one of those fights would be interesting. I also wouldn't mind a Couture-Akiyama scrap.
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LANE BRADFORD, MMATORCH CONTRIBUTOR
I think Couture will win this matchup against Coleman at UFC 109. I predict he will TKO the "Hammer" in the 2nd round. After he wins I would like to see him take on either the winner of Rampage-Evans, or Nog-Griffin. One of those two matchups winner probably gets the LHW shot so the other winner should get Couture. I have all the respect in the world for Couture and his abilities. He has proven time and time again he can get it done, however a title push to me is not justified. He can game plan with the best of them but I dont see him getting by Evans, Griffin, Nog, Machida, or Rua.
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JASON AMADI, MMATORCH COLUMNIST
If Couture beats Coleman, he should probably get a shot at Rogerio Nogueira should he defeat his friend Forrest Griffin. I would suggest the same should Forrest defeat Noguiera, but there’s a chance they may not be willing to fight each other. You could also pair him up with Jon Jones should he defeat Brandon Vera. Should Coleman lose, he should probably consider retirement, but since he won’t, a fight against the loser of Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz would suit him fine.
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ROBERT TEAL, MMATORCH SPECIALIST
I believe that if Randy wins this fight he is a fight away from getting a title shot. That may seem unfair within the division but I think that is the reality. I think his next fight would be against the winner of the Rampage vs. Evans to determine a number one contender. I think it is a possibility you could see him against the winner between Little Nog and Forrest also.
If Mark loses I think he will get either Keith Jardine or Thiago Silva. All three fighters will be in need of a win or they face possibly being ousted from the UFC.
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MATT PELKEY, MMATORCH COLUMMNIST
I know the UFC will be tempted to strike while the iron is hot and shoot Couture right to a title shot, but that would be unfair to the ten or so guys who SHOULD be ahead of him in the light-heavyweight pecking order.
Beating Brandon Vera and Mark Coleman, two fighters well outside the top-10, should not earn you a title shot. I understand the business perspective of things, but Couture should have beat at least one legitimate contender before a title shot.
Maybe match him up with Little Nog if he gets past Forrest Griffin. That would make for some fun storylines and could be sold as a legit #1 contender fight. Other than Nogueira, I'd love to see him face Jon Jones in an old guard vs. new guard type of fight, provided Jones passes his test against Brandon Vera.
If Coleman loses, he needs to hang it up. I think every fight for him should be a win or go home scenario at this point. He's 45 and, pardon the cliche, not getting any younger. His game hasn't evolved and never fully will at this point. Maybe one more fight against Chuck Liddell could sell if the UFC ever decides to start a "seniors" division.
Our next batch of Roundtable Topics to be addressed over the next week or two are as follows (so keep coming back to MMATorch every day for this and more exclusive features):
-If Mark Coleman beats Randy Couture convincing, what's your pick for Coleman's next fight? And Couture?
-Who are the two or three current Strikeforce fighters (other than Fedor) you'd be most intrigued to see acquired by UFC. What match-ups would you make from those acquisitions?
-Who are the two or three current UFC fighters you'd be most intrigued to see leave UFC for whatever reason (perhaps not being given a fair shake, already fought everyone, hit a ceiling, etc.) and be acquired by Strikeforce. What match-ups would you make from those acquisitions?
-Would you prefer Strikeforce in two years was out of business, close to UFC's equal (in revenue, ratings, buyrates, talent roster), or had surpassed UFC (assuming UFC stays static in the mean time)? Why?
-Should UFC add a women's fighting division?
-What would you do to try to make WEC successful on PPV, even if in general you disagree with WEC going on PPV? In other words, what advice would you give to Zuffa assuming they were open to some outside-the-box or aggressive marketing ideas?
[Randy Couture photo credit (c) Mike Lano]
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