It was the first-ever fight between Ultimate Fighting Championship Hall of Fame inductees inside the Octagon: Randy Couture met Mark Coleman in the UFC 109 main event on Feb. 6, 2010 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, as two MMA pioneers faced off in the modern era.
Fresh off of a controversial decision against Brandon Vera, Couture proved to be the superior fighter when he duked it out with Coleman. He eventually wore down the 1992 Olympian and choked him unconscious in the second round.
There were other notable fights at UFC 109. Chael Sonnen won a decision from Nate Marquardt in a co-main event that netted both men “Fight of the Night” bonuses; Paulo Thiago earned “Submission of the Night” honors following his brabo choke finish on Mike Swick; and Matt Serra was awarded “Knockout of the Night” on the heels of his first-round stoppage against Frank Trigg. The prelims saw four-time NCAA All-American and future Bellator MMA champion Phil Davis sweep the scorecards against Brian Stann with 30-27, 30-26 and 30-26 marks from the judges.
Couture went on to face James Toney in an infamous MMA-versus-boxing spectacle before retiring after a knockout loss to Lyoto Machida at UFC 129. Meanwhile, Coleman never again set foot inside the cage, calling it a career following his encounter with “The Natural.”