Randy Couture Says Dana White Uses "The Vince McMahon Pro Wrestling Model"
On a recent episode of The Wrestling Inc. Daily, Wrestling Inc. Managing Editor Nick Hausman sat down with UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture. Couture stars in the upcoming movie, The Manson Brothers Midnight Zombie Massacre, and he spoke on what helped him get into character as a grizzled pro wrestling veteran for the movie.
"Really just channeling my own grizzled spirit from 14 years in mixed martial arts, really," Couture admitted. "I didn't have to go very far."
Couture is also an accomplished amateur wrestler along with his legendary MMA career. Hausman asked him what his level of pro wrestling fandom is.
"Back in the day, when I was a kid, Jimmy Snuka, guys like that, I watched as a kid, but I quickly realized that it wasn't real, and I started getting into real wrestling, collegiate wrestling and Olympic wrestling. And my interest in the pro wrestling scene kind of went away," Couture said. "That's just how the progression went for me, and once I was heavily immersed in collegiate wrestling, scholastic wrestling and Olympic wrestling, I really kind of lost the luster for the pro wrestling thing.
"It just wasn't my deal. Some guys have gone the other way. Look at Kurt Angle, look at the Steiner brothers, they had all real, genuine amateur wrestling careers and then jumped into pro wrestling as a way to make a living. For a lot of us amateur wrestlers, there were no professional outlets to be a professional athlete or to continue to make a living using the skills that we'd spend most of our lives developing.
"So pro wrestling was certainly an option for some of those guys. Brock Lesnar obviously came from a NCAA Championship in Minnesota and then went into pro wrestling, and then dabbled in mixed martial arts as well. There is definitely some some crossover. I think if you look at the model that Dana White and the UFC is using, it's absolutely the Vince McMahon pro wrestling model."
Many amateur wrestlers and MMA fighters have shown interest in signing with WWE, including Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson. Couture revealed whether or not he has any interest in joining the pro wrestling world anytime soon.
"I've never done any the training. It's never been something that I was terribly interested in," Couture admitted. "Obviously, we saw Ronda Rousey make that transition from MMA, when things weren't going so well for her in MMA, and she jumped over into WWE. They've never approached me about being involved, and honestly, I don't think it's something I would have been that interested in."
The Manson Brothers Midnight Zombie Massacre will be released on September 10 in select theaters and via VOD.
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