Randy Couture is leaving the UFC

According to the Fight Network and mmajunkie.com Randy Couture has decided to leave the UFC.

This is the second big hit for the UFC heavyweight division in about a week. Earlier this week Fedor Emelianenko signed with M-1 or former M-1 out of Russia.

Here's a quote from "The Natural".

“I appreciate this opportunity the sport of MMA and the UFC has given me,” Couture told the website. “However, I’m tired of swimming upstream at this stage with the management of the UFC. It only makes sense at this point in my career to fight Fedor Emelianenko, and since he’s now signed with another organization, I feel like it’s time to resign and focus on my other endeavors.“

Randy Couture is a class act and at 44 years old he has nothing left to prove, whether he fought Fedor or not he is a true MMA legend and will be missed inside the ring. His last two victories over Tim Sylvia and Gabriel Gonzaga defied all odds and truly put him at the top of the sport.

So, this leaves Tim Sylvia, Brandon Vera, Cheik Kongo, Antonio Nogeuira, Mirko Cro Cop, Andrei Arlovski and all the other top 10 UFC heavyweight contenders in immediate title contention. Any of these guys could be 1-2 wins away from holding the UFC heavyweight title.