Randy Couture Praises AEW Star Who Trains In His 'Shoot Gym'

Randy Couture might be spending more time acting than fighting these days, but his feet are still firmly planted in the combat sports world. The "Expendables" star owns and operates a gym out of Las Vegas, where celebrities come to learn from the former UFC Heavyweight Champion. One notable name that has impressed Couture is none other than former AEW World Champion Jon Moxley.

In an interview with Comingsoon.net, Couture said that Moxley "assimilated" to the catch-as-catch-can training really well.

"He's in there putting himself in situations not a lot of those guys want to put themselves in a real shoot gym with real catch guys," Couture said. "He was fun to work with because he had a real deep passion for what he was doing. I think he sees the roots of pro wrestling and where they came from, and catch-as-catch-can wrestling, which was a real sport in the early 1900s."

Moxley has been imbuing his in-ring work with MMA influences since signing with All Elite Wrestling in 2019, favoring bulldog chokes and rear naked chokes as opposed to the more high-impact moves he used in WWE. Moxley has also been a marquee talent for Game Changer Wrestling — he currently holds the promotion's world championship — and Josh Barnett's Bloodsport events. Moxley holds a 3-1 record in Bloodsport, losing only to Barnett himself.

Moxley's MMA influence isn't only showing up in the ring, but also in his latest faction. Alongside Bryan Danielson and William Regal, he's been instilling a much more grounded, vicious mindset in young upstart Wheeler Yuta, with all four men forming the Blackpool Combat Club. Considering the influence Couture and his gym have had on Moxley, it wouldn't necessarily be a stretch to call Couture an honorary Blackpool Combat Club member, or at the very least Blackpool Combat Club adjacent.