Couture Q&A (cont.)

SI.com: You were at the Affliction show where Fedor beat Tim Sylvia in 36 seconds. You went the distance with Sylvia to win the UFC heavyweight title last year. How surprised were you with how dominant Fedor was?

Couture: Well, yeah, obviously I didn't beat Sylvia in 36 seconds. I did have a flashback when he knocked him down and got on his back. I was like, oh this looks oddly familiar. He was able to finish the choke and get the tap. He was very impressive. He's very explosive and very quick and once he had Tim hurt he jumped on him fast. So, I'm excited to see how I do. I think it looks good. Sooner or later we're going to make it happen. In some way, shape or form, in some production somewhere. I know there are obviously a lot of people that would be interested in participating in that fight, the UFC included. We'll see how it all pans out. I'm confident we'll get it done.

SI.com: Another one of the problems you had with the UFC was the compensation that the fighters get in relation to the record-breaking gates and pay-per-view buys that have made them the dominant MMA organization. Do you ever see that divide getting resolved?

Couture: I think its one of the main issues in our sport. We aren't compensated the way other professional athletes are in other sports. We are in a sport that is very, very popular and bringing in a lot of money. The fact that the UFC made $250 million last year and they paid out probably $17 million to all the fighters that fought in all the pay-per-views, that's an issue in my mind. I think there are some other issues like independent rankings, regardless of promotion or production, and loosening up the exclusivity so that the top fighters can fight each other regardless of what promotion they're signed with. That's a huge issue for me because otherwise we risk being fragmented like boxing where everybody is claiming to have the world champion. I think and am hopeful that WAMMA (World Alliance of Mixed Martial Arts) is able to pull the fighters together and create some of these things that we need as a sport.

SI.com: Tito Ortiz has also brought up the problems he has with the compensation that fighters get. Do you think having guys like you and Tito leave the UFC and talk about this will make them change their ways?

Couture: The UFC at some point will see the wisdom. I think right now the UFC sees themselves as the tip of the spear and a lot of ways rightly so. They have done a lot of things to get the sport to where it is and now it seems to them a lot of people are trying to cash in on the hard work that they've put in, but as fighters we need that competition, we need other options, we need other places we can go and fight and continue to make a living. If you can't get a fair shake from the UFC maybe one of the other organizations wants to see you compete and put you on their card. That's only going to continue to force people to pay fighters better for what they do. I think it all works out in the end. I agree with a lot of the things Tito [Ortiz] has told Dana [White]. Obviously he and Dana have a long-standing personal history and some of the valid points Tito makes get lost in the gray matter in the personal dialogue between the two of them, but I agree with a lot of the things he says.

SI.com: How much longer would you want to fight? Would this possible Fedor fight be your last fight?

Couture: I don't know. I can't place a limit on myself. I entered this thing 11 years ago taking it one fight at a time and its gotten me this far. I'm just going to take this thing one fight at a time and evaluate my performance and training and how I feel physically as I go along. Could there be more? I certainly hope there's more because I love to fight, but I'm just going to look to make the Fedor fight happen and then we'll evaluate how that goes and how I feel and what all the options are after and see what happens.

SI.com: One of your good friends, Quentin "Rampage" Jackson, was hospitalized for a mental health evaluation after being arrested on charges of felony evading, reckless driving and hit-and run last month. Have you talked to him since the incident?

Couture: I haven't talked to him and I was very surprised about that whole thing. I want to be as supportive as I can for him. At the same time I know he has a lot of people clamoring over him and on him and I want to give him his space. I think he knows that there are a few of us here that will be here for him regardless of what happens. We'll always support him and we have his back. I just hope everything turns out well and we get him on the right path and healthy and fighting again because at heart he's a warrior.

SI.com: Finally, you've been on a book tour for your autobiography, Becoming the Natural. How is that going and how has the book done so far?

Couture: It's been interesting. It wasn't something I really planned; it was just an opportunity that came along. It's doing well. I just got word that it's the No. 8 autobiography on the market right now in all genres. I guess we're just ahead of Tiger Woods. I'm sure I can't beat him at golf but maybe I can in this endeavor.