Couture on Jones test, lawsuit, and CM Punk

UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture recently appeared on Submission Radio and discussed Jon Jones positive test for cocaine metabolites, CM Punk signing with the UFC, the lawsuit, and more.

Couture didn’t start MMA until he was 33, and had one of most storied careers in the sport’s history. Phil “CM Punk” Brooks, 36, recently signed with the UFC, so it was natural to ask “The Natural” about the controversial WWE star.

I mean I don’t really know anything about CM Punk,” said Couture. “I don’t know anything about his athletic background, I don’t really watch any of the Pro Wrestling. Not that it would translate, other than the fan base that he probably brings over if they put on the fight in a pay per view. And I’m sure that’s the drive behind signing him to a contact; is you know, not unlike Brock Lesnar he brings in a ton of fans from the WWE world.

“Unlike Punk, I was aware of Brock’s athletic background as a collegiate wrestler and he had some athletic skill to back up being brought in and tossed right in the mix. So I can’t really weigh in on what to expect from CM. I guess we’ll see. We’ll see who they match him up with, and we’ll see how he fares, and see what kind of skill he brings to the table. I’ve never seen him in a training environment or anything like that. So it’s really hard for me to estimate what his abilities are going to be. I think if they throw him in at the top of the food chain, it’s probably going to be a pretty short run for him. If they take care of him and try to take advantage of the fan base that he brings from pro wrestling, then you’re probably going to get some fairly easier opponents and get a chance to get his feet wet and see where he’s at.

I don’t know that the age is really a factor. I think that he’s obviously a reasonably good athlete to be doing what he’s been doing. People can say what they want about all the pro wrestlers, but those guys are still very physically fit and very good athletes. It may be a show, and it may be predetermined outcomes, but it’s still an athletic, physical endeavor in what they do. So I don’t really have an issue or think that his age is going to be a huge factor. His athletic background certainly is going to determine how quickly he gets up to speed in all the areas of MMA. Obviously we know that Jiu Jitsu alone isn’t going to carry you very far. You need to have the other tools in the tool belt or somebody’s going to point it out to you and it’s not very much fun.

Moving from controversy to controversy, Couture was asked about UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones’ positive test for cocaine metabolites.

I understand the difference between an in-competition fight night drug test, and it’ll be interesting to see what those test results were when they come back from Jon’s fight night test, verses the one he did on December 3rd that was an out of competition test,” said Couture. “Obviously still people want to understand that line. ‘In-competition’ is the night of the fight. Anything in training camp or before that, or the random tests that happen throughout the year, those are out of competition. Yes he’s in training camp for that fight, but it’s still considered out of competition when he’s not competing until fight night. So there’s a very fine line there, and those lists vary in what are banned substances and what are not.

“Regardless, cocaine is an illegal substance whether it’s performance enhancing or not. So it raises a whole bunch of other questions about Jon and obviously he’s volunteered to put himself in to rehab, which is good for him. I hope that goes well. It’s a shame that the reputation and the ability that he brings to the cage is a little bit tarnished now because of this, but it is what it is. He’s the one who has to look himself in the mirror and deal with that. It will be interesting to see what his fight night drug test comes back and if it comes back clean. If it doesn’t come back clean, then obviously the commission will have no choice but to pursue sanctions against him. Will they go easy on him because he’s subjected himself to rehab? That’s a question we’ll see I guess when the results come back.

They say controversial things come in threes, so lastly, Couture was asked about the class action suit filed against the UFC.

Well obviously I was approached,” began Couture. “I’ve known about the class action suit coming for eight or nine months and was approached about being involved, and haven’t decided one way or the other whether I’m going to throw my name in that hat. I suspect at this point I’m probably not going to. Obviously I’ve had my run ins and my fights with ZUFFA since they brought the company over, and over rights, and a lot of the things that are on the table with the class action suit.

“And I applaud Cung Le and Nate Quarry and Jon Fitch for being willing to stand up, take the heat, and put themselves on the line for the rights of the fighters, who in a lot of cases are getting the raw end, the short end of the stick with regards to the contracts and the way business has been done with the industry leader and promotion in the sport right now, and that’s the UFC and ZUFFA. So I wasn’t surprised. I knew it was coming. I know it’s going to be a long, drawn out process.

“I think 2015 for a whole bunch of reasons is going to be a pretty interesting year in mixed martial arts to see what comes of all this sport and how the sport adjusts and settles out. I think we’ve going through some growing pain, largely because of ZUFFA and the UFC and the way that business has been done. It’s obviously a global sport now all over the world, and you know it is in some ways, the market is a little oversaturated. It seems to have lost some of it’s shine and that special luster that it had back in the day when there were only six or eight pay per views a year. I think that the door has been cracked open a little bit by all these things, to allow some of the other promotions like Bellator or World Series of Fighting to grow their brand and fill that void, and to promote, and allow a bunch of other fighters to make a living, and you know ply their wares, and get their sponsors, and do a lot of things in the sport of mixed martial arts. So I think it’s going to be a really interesting year.