Couture: ‘I’ve lost before, it’s not the end of the world’

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Randy Couture just called The Times from the New Orleans set of his upcoming film, ‘The Expendables’ with Sylvester Stallone, and was quick to point out he’s excited to prove in his just-announced Aug. 29 fight against Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira that he feels as strong as ever.

‘It’s nothing different than what’s happened to me in the past,’ Couture said. ‘I’ve lost before, it’s not the end of the world.’

Couture has emerged from high-profile losses to Chuck Liddell and retirement to regain a title before. So, despite the repeated head-pounding he took in the final seconds of his November loss to current Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight king Brock Lesnar and the fact that he’ll turn 46 later this month, Couture maintains he’s asked himself the toughest questions about his future in this sport.

‘I have to meet and exceed my own benchmarks, I have to learn new skills and prove to myself that my body’s holding up,’ Couture said. ‘It is. I’m not slowing down.

‘I’ve taken this one fight at a time my whole career. I’ve enjoyed the journey, and I still enjoy it.’

Couture said he was offered the Nogueira fight immediately after the former UFC interim heavyweight champ lost to Frank Mir in December. The Couture-Nogueira winner would be the logical challenger to next month’s Lesnar-Mir winner at UFC 100 in Las Vegas.

‘You have to respect [Nogueira’s] tools, he forces you to train hard,’ Couture said. ‘He’s durable and wily.’

Couture, raised in Seattle, will enjoy a home-arena advantage at UFC 102 in Portland, Ore.’s Rose Garden. He used to coach wrestling at Oregon State down the road in Corvallis.

‘This being the first UFC in the Pacific Northwest, I think we’ll pack the house,’ he said.

-- Lance Pugmire