Bodog Beat

Fedor Emelianenko and Randy Couture met in Los Angeles, CA for a photo shoot. (AP Images)

UFC heavyweight champion Randy Couture (16-8-0) and former Pride heavyweight champ Fedor Emelianenko (27-1-0) got a good look at each other over the weekend when the two top-ranked fighters met in Los Angeles, CA for a photo shoot.

Although Couture is under contract with the UFC and Fedor is contracted to M-1, the two hope to fight in October of 2008 when Couture's contract is scheduled to expire. For now however, the question of when the contract expires is going in front of a court, as the UFC has sued Couture for violating the terms of his agreement.

"I wasn't that surprised," Couture told The Fight Network about the lawsuit. "I kinda thought it took them long enough. I thought they would have come after me sooner."

Emelianenko also shared his opinion about the situation, saying "What happened to Randy is not surprising to us. We experienced what it means to leave the UFC and how it goes"

As the #1 heavyweight in the world, Fedor says he doesn't have any fear of fighting Couture, and hopes the two can be friends – both before their upcoming fight and afterwards.

"For me, it's important I want to be his friend," Emelianenko explained. "Fight[ing] is just a sport. After the fight, we stay friends."

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