People are always awe-stricken when Randy Couture defies odds by defeating much younger opponents. I have often wondered myself how much life Couture's battery still has in it. I've watched fighters like Ken Shamrock lose to younger, seemingly hungrier, fighters like Tito Ortiz and I think to myself that Shamrock is just getting too old to compete. I wonder to myself if there is a magic number that, when reached, spells the end of a Mixed Martial Artist's career. Then I watch Couture compete and I'm baffled. It just doesn't add up.
Could 40 really be the new 30 in competitive sports? Michael Jordan came out of retirement in 2001 only to shatter existing records. Lance Armstrong made younger cyclists look like they were wasting their time competing with him. Julio Franco is still playing major league baseball at age 49. Morten Andersen re-signed with the NFL in 2007 and, according to wikipedia.com, at season's end Anderson had "the most accurate season of his career". So maybe it's not necessarily the age of the fighter that matters.
On March 22nd a man, who is thought to be the oldest MMA fighter still competing, will step into the ring one last time at the Dixie Throwdown V in Irondale, Alabama. According to nbcsports.msnbc.com Skip Hall will retire after Saturday's fight at age 63. This man is old enough to be Randy Couture's daddy. By the time the term MMA was coined Hall was already training in jiu-jitsu, boxing and other martial arts. Superior athleticism and the heart of a lion are responsible for facilitating Hall's journey into MMA. At age 60 Hall didn't back down from a fight even with a broken foot. Hall's story is truly amazing and it is bound to instill hope in fighters that are getting into the MMA game at an older age.
by JP Berube aka MMA Commentator
myspace.com/mmajournalist
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