Randy Couture's rendezvous with James Toney is set, but he isn't opposed to matchmaking for himself down the road.
The UFC Hall of Famer on Monday said he'd be happy to fight newly minted light-heavyweight champion Mauricio "Shogun" Rua in the fall after he tangles with Toney (72-6-3 boxing, 0-0 MMA) at UFC 118.
"I'd love a crack at him after Toney in [August]," Couture (18-10 MMA, 15-7 UFC) wrote on his official Twitter account. "Maybe Rua in October [at] UFC 120."
Although the message appears to be little more than wishful thinking, Rua (19-4 MMA, 3-2 UFC) got the ball rolling after he took the 205-pound title from Lyoto Machida this past Saturday at UFC 113.
Following his victory, the new champion expressed interest in a bout with Couture for his first title defense, though UFC president Dana White over the weekend said that the Brazilian's next opponent is likely the winner of a UFC 114 headliner of Quinton "Rampage" Jackson vs. Rashad Evans.
Although far from being officially announced, UFC 120 could take place Oct. 16 at The O2 in London and air live on Spike TV. Welterweight contender and British fighter Dan Hardy is rumored to be part of the card, as is recent UFC signee and U.K.-based fighter Paul Sass.
Couture's first obligation is the Toney fight, which will be contested at heavyweight on Aug. 28 in Boston. The city's beloved TD Garden hosts the summer event, which is the promotion's first in Massachusetts after MMA received official sanctioning earlier this year.
Couture praised Rua's performance this past weekend and called the Brazilian's performance "great." Although he welcomes a title shot, he told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that it's not his call who gets the first crack at the new king.
"Things work out how they will," he stated in a text message.
In his most recent performance, Couture dismantled former UFC heavyweight champion Mark Coleman at UFC 109, his second consecutive appearance at 205 pounds since a run at heavyweight in which he took the title at UFC 68 and defended it once before relinquishing the strap at UFC 91 to current champion Brock Lesnar.
Couture's new movie, "The Expendables," is set to open Aug. 12, mere weeks before the Toney fight
Couture/Shogun? Yes please.