MMA’s Most Legendary Feuds That Went Beyond the Octagon
As much as we love the sport of mixed martial arts (MMA), there are bound to be rivalries. It is based on rivalry, self-esteem, and arrogance, and sometimes athletes who have opposite temperaments or fighting techniques meet in ways that extend beyond the Octagon. Some of these rivalries have escalated to hatred-filled feuds, characterized by verbal attacks, psychological warfare, and, in some instances, physical confrontations that extend to the streets, the gym, or even the social media platforms. While many fighters take their frustrations to the cage, there are some that have had animosity that has spilled over well past the final buzzer. These are the rivalries that fans cared about that defined fighters’ careers and occasionally even the course of MMA history. It is high time to discuss some of the toughest rivalries in MMA that did not end inside the cage. Jon Jones vs. Daniel Cormier The animosity between Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier can be considered one of the most tense and long-standing in the history of the UFC. This fight that wanted to be a light heavyweight championship bout soon became much more than that and turned into a bitter, long-lasting rivalry that played out over the course of two legendary fights. The rivalry between them started in 2014 when they both fought for the first time at UFC 182. Jones and Cormier had bitter words for each other during their press conferences, and the two fighters came to blows at a media event. Jones accused Cormier of being a ‘fake champion’ because of his Olympic wrestling background, while Cormier accused Jones of being a bad person on and off the cage, including criminal charges and steroid use. It was a genuine hatred, and they soon let it out by turning into a verbal battle. In the first bout in the Octagon, Jones defeated Gustafsson by unanimous decision, but their rivalry began when Jones lost the title because of legal troubles. Cormier won the belt while it was vacant, and many fans as well as fighters regarded him as a ‘paper champion’ until he defeated Jones. The second fight was held at UFC 214 in 2017, and Jones knocked out Cormier with a head kick, but the victory was changed because Jones took steroids. Thus, the constant soap opera aspect of this particular rivalry—both in and out of the cage—helped to make this one of the most compelling stories in the annals of the sport. Tito Ortiz vs. Chuck Liddell Tito Ortiz and Chuck Liddell are two of the earlier UFC fighters, and their fight was instrumental in bringing the sport into the limelight in the mid 2000s. The hatred that fueled their rivalry was not just professional, but both men have shared training camps with each other and actually have been friends. Ortiz, the brash light heavyweight champion, did not want to fight Liddell, saying they were related. Liddell, on the other hand, was of the opinion that Ortiz was avoiding him because he knew that Liddell would be the winner. Their rivalry boiled over at UFC 47 in 2004, when Liddell KO’d Ortiz in the second round, thus shutting up his opponent and becoming the most dreaded fighter in the division. The two would later fight again in UFC 66 in 2006, in which Liddell would again knock down Ortiz in the third round to retain his light heavyweight belt. Although the rivalry was one-sided, fans were entertained, and the hatred between Ortiz and Liddell became a significant plot in the initial years of the UFC. But little did fans know that the two legends would meet for one last time in 2018 under Golden Boy Promotions, with Ortiz emerging as the winner of the trilogy fight, albeit in what can be described as a fight that happened in the twilight of both fighters’ careers. Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Conor McGregor McGregor is not a stranger to rivalry, but the rivalry with Khabib Nurmagomedov was something that the public had never seen before. When two of the most famous UFC fighters agreed to fight each other, the fight was about culture, ego, and fighting style, but it became one of the biggest rivalries in the UFC history. The hatred between McGregor and Khabib was taken to the next level before their fight at UFC 229 in October of 2018. The marketing genius who likes to take to social media and brag, McGregor used the abuser’s language to disrespect Khabib, his religion, his family, and his country, Dagestan. The rivalry only intensified with the incident in which McGregor attacked Khabib’s bus in Brooklyn and threw a dolly through the window. The fight itself was one of the greatest in the history of UFC: Khabib was dominating McGregor and eventually submitted him in the fourth round. But the melee that occurred after the fight, where Khabib jumped over the cage to attack McGregor’s team, escalated the rivalry into a complete catastrophe. The two camps fought, and the brawl extended to the crowd, and in that regard, the fight was suspended and both fighters were fined. After the fight, bitterness between McGregor’s and Khabib’s teams remained; the fighters themselves continued to insult each other on social networks. As Khabib retired without a loss, the sour taste of this rivalry is still felt to this date in the MMA fraternity. Ronda Rousey vs. Miesha Tate The battles between Ronda Rousey and Miesha Tate were one of the first to become popular in the category of women’s MMA. The fact that Rousey is the brash and confident Olympic judo medalist who had no problem telling anyone who would listen that she was the ‘baddest woman on the planet’ while Tate, the far more reserved but no less tough wrestler, actually seemed to despise Rousey only added to the appeal of their rivalry. It started in Strikeforce, where Rousey beat Tate to the women’s bantamweight title through armbar submission in 2012. The two faced each other again in the UFC,
