Ryan Couture, son of MMA legend Randy "The Natural Couture," will be making his Bellator debut against Tom Bagnasco on Friday at Bellator 124.
The announcement of the 32-year-old lightweight's bout with Bagnasco was made after one of his fights was postponed this past summer, according to Yahoo! Sports. However, his hopes were raised the next day when Scott Coker, his former boss at Strikeforce, was announced as the new President of Bellator MMA.
"I was pretty disappointed to have a fight fall out from under me, but I think it happened for a reason," Couture said. "Scott and I always had a great working relationship in Strikeforce, and I'm hoping we can pick that right back up."
Couture believes Coker joining Bellator would provide new opportunities for him, and was also happy that Coker got rid of the promotion's tournament structure for fights, which Couture admitted he wasn't a big fan of.
"The grid and wear and tear guys I know who did it had to go through would not have been optimal," he said. "With the tournament structure, it's not something I would have been eagerly seeking out, but at the same time, if it would have been the best opportunity for me, I would not have said 'no.'"
Becoming an MMA fighter was not always a main career option for Couture, who pursued a degree in math at Western Washington University and abandoned athletics since the school didn't have a wrestling program, MMAjunkiereported. He said, however, that he started to train in jiu-jitsu when he decided to get back in shape, and would eventually decide to fight when he started working and training with Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas.
Couture has looked up to his father, Randy, since he was a child, and Randy would support him as a coach, training partner, corner man, and mentor.
"My dad was always my hero before he started fighting and became everyone else's," Couture said. "I've idolized him since I was a little boy. I was in ninth grade when dad had his first fight. We ended up getting a dubbed VHS copy of the fight shortly afterwards. That was my first memory of watching him fight. It was kind of a shock and it took some getting used to, seeing him beat people up on TV.
"I had grown up watching him wrestle so I was used to seeing him compete, but seeing him punching guys was a pretty big change."
Couture currently holds an 8-3 record in MMA. While Couture is a second-generation fighter, he plans to make his own mark, become a champion in Bellator and establish a legacy of his own, MMAjunkie reported.
"I know I'm more than capable of becoming a world champion in the sport," Couture said. "I know there's a long road ahead of me if I want to climb to the top of the lightweight division here with Bellator. There are some lightweights here that I really admire and I know I'm going to have to work hard to get to that level."
Bellator 124 will take place on Friday at the Compuware Arena in Plymouth Township, Michigan.
