Jon Jones vs. Rashad Evans and the 10 Greatest Feuds in MMA History

It all goes down April 21, 2012.

The Jon Jones-Rashad Evans rivalry has been building for what seems like an eternity. Injuries to both fighters have shelved the contest multiple times, causing animosity to grow to a level rarely seen in sports. 

Along with the conflict between the two combatants, interest in the fight is peaking with the prospect of conclusive gratification on the horizon.

There is a certain intrigue surrounding the battle between these two polarizing figures. The matchup has demanded the attention of fans, whether it's been to throw their support to one fighter or the other, or simply to sate the appetite for a good old-fashioned grudge match.

In honor of the approaching showdown, let's take a look at the top-10 rivalries MMA has produced.

10: Georges St-Pierre vs. Matt Hughes

The Hughes-St-Pierre saga played out like a classic re-enactment of the old lion-young lion fable. The master, Hughes, was able to foil GSP's title aspirations in their first meeting, but succumbed to a changing of the guard in chapters two and three.

The trilogy between Hughes and St-Pierre lacked the animosity and name-calling that characterizes so many of the great feuds in MMA. The closest this rivalry got to becoming ugly was when cameras caught Hughes and Sean Sherk laughing at a defeated GSP at UFC 69. 

Rather than twist the event into hatred, St.-Pierre shrugged off the insult and whipped Hughes in the final bout of the trilogy, closing the cover on a work that so eloquently depicted the passing of the torch from old legend to new.

Though the rivalry is more or less an open and shut case, Hughes has become increasingly critical of St-Pierre of late. After St-Pierre won a lackluster decision over Jake Shields, Hughes had this to say:

"

I really feel like Georges fights not to lose. He just doesn’t fight to win anymore (via Cage Potato). I like Georges, I like watching him fight, I wish there was some way I could help him to get that hunger back inside of him. Georges has the potential of being so much better than what we’ve seen recently.

"

While the critique is no more scathing than some of what GSP supporters had to say about his performance that night, it reminds us that the battle between these two is ongoing and may never conclude.

Of course, it is done in the cage, but as Hughes continues to jostle to position his own legacy higher than the French-Canadian's, rest assured the rivalry rages on, even if the rage comes from one side more than the other these days.

Hap tip to Cagepotato.com for capturing the quote. 

9: B.J. Penn vs. Matt Hughes

While we're on Matt Hughes, the welterweight legend's beef with Hawaiian B.J. Penn also makes the cut for a top-10 rivalry. As with GSP, Hughes' feud with Penn spans three fights. 

Hughes had built an aura of invincibility about himself prior to his first match with Penn, and the loss came as quite a shock to many around the sport. 

The real shock came after the bout, though, when Penn bolted to Japan, vacating the belt, which Hughes recaptured as part of a five-fight win streak. After that win streak, the second fight went down.

Hughes emerged victorious this time, stopping "The Prodigy" with strikes in the third round. It would be another four years before the rivals settled the score in a rubber match.

On November 10, 2010, it took just 21 seconds for Penn to knock out Hughes. The fight lacked the same mystique as the first two, due in large part to the struggles of each fighter leading up to the contest.

Still, the third bout provided closure in one of the greatest MMA rivalries of all time, albeit with a whimper rather than a bang.

Both Hughes and Penn care an awful lot about their reputation and how they will be remembered, and that is what made their trilogy great. There was a lot more on the line than the obvious each time they squared off.

Before the first rematch at UFC 63, Penn had this to say: "I want to accomplish things that will make sure people always remember B.J. Penn. Beating Matt is just one of those things.''

It seems likely that people will remember Penn. Just as they will remember Hughes.

Hat tip to Sherdog for digging out that quote.

8: Frank Mir vs. Brock Lesnar

While heated rivalries often end in mutual respect, the feud between Frank Mir and Brock Lesnar certainly did not.

Lesnar's arrival in the UFC was met by equal measures of scorn and excitement, and Frank Mir was a champion of the former. As a former UFC champion and Brazilian jiu-jitsu magician, Mir saw Lesnar as a sideshow WWE star, not fit to be in such a reputable MMA promotion. 

The result of the first contest between the two heavyweights vindicated the outspoken veteran, as he stopped the Lesnar hype-train before it even left the station, submitting the behemoth with a kneebar, 1:30 into the bout.

Lesnar followed up the loss with a victory over Heath Herring, and parlayed that success into a championship fight with Randy Couture, which he won via knockout. Meanwhile, Mir had wrestled the interim UFC heavyweight title away from Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, setting up a unification fight with Lesnar.

The mutual hatred communicated between the two adversaries requires more than a little time to do it justice, so suffice it to say, these two men were not fond of each other heading into their second go-round at UFC 100.

The fight saw Lesnar pound Mir to a pulp, then taunt him afterward. The disgust of the fans was met by double fingers from Lesnar, who embraced a villain role going forward.

Unfortunately, this rivalry ended without a rubber match, the retirement of Lesnar ensuring it will forever remain a tie.  

7: Chuck Liddell vs. Randy Couture

There are many parallels between this rivalry and the one between Matt Hughes and Georges St-Pierre. The younger fighter dropped the first of three bouts before stringing together a pair of wins, and there was never any real smack talk or animosity between combatants. 

What makes this rivalry so intriguing, beyond the fact that both Couture and Liddell are UFC Hall of Famers, is that it stands as the first MMA rivalry to really make it mainstream.

The impact The Ultimate Fighter has made on helping the sport branch out is well documented. The impact the reality show had on the rivalry between Liddell and Couture remains understated.

The two legends got along cordially on the show, but the exposure for the rematch alone won countless new fans for each coach, as well as the sport as a whole.

Couture had taken the first bout via knockout, and Liddell returned the favor in the rematch that signified the end of The Ultimate Fighter. A loss in the 2006 rubber match sent "The Natural" into retirement for a time, and the two fighters had little to do with one another after that.

That these fighters never resorted to belittling one another only makes the rivalry all the better. They were above it. They did not need to resort to petty name-calling and self promotion. They behaved like champions even when their competition was at its most intense.

They handled their rivalry the way it needed to be handled at the dawn of MMA mainstream popularity.

6: Chuck Liddell vs. Tito Ortiz

While his rivalry with Randy Couture was made all the better by the professionalism that characterized it, Liddell's feud with Tito Ortiz was great because of the genuine dislike the two men had for one another.

The two UFC competitors were once good friends and training partners, but the relationship came into question when Ortiz was the champion to Liddell's status as the No. 1 contender. Tito expected Liddell to work as his gate-keeper, but "The Iceman" wanted the title for himself.

The fight was put on hiatus because of Tito's health, Contract disputes and the delay berthed the Couture-Liddell saga, as the two men competed for an interim title in Ortiz's absence. Couture defeated Liddell, then Ortiz. 

When the fight finally went down, Liddell used his trademark sprawl-n-brawl tactics to hammer Ortiz into defeat in a one-sided match that left little question as to who the superior fighter was.

After the bout, both Ortiz and Liddell reeled off five consecutive wins, once again positioning themselves on a collision course.

As with the first bout, Liddell blasted away at Ortiz, who was unable to secure a takedown in the rematch. The fight was once again stopped due to strikes.

The pair was set for a third conflict as part of The Ultimate Fighter Season 11 finale, but Ortiz withdrew due to injury. 

Though fans were robbed of seeing two legends fight for a third time, it doesn't take a whole lot of imagination to guess closely at what we missed out on.

5: Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen

This rivalry is unique as it consists of a major contributor and a silent partner.

It is an amazing feat that Sonnen has achieved, talking more trash since his submission loss to Silva in August 2010 than before the fight.

Since the aftermath of the one and only contest between the two, Sonnen has slandered Silva's character, attacked his fighting style, bad-mouthed the nation of Brazil and threatened to smack his opponent's significant other on the bum. 

He has also been telling people that he beat Silva and carries around a fake UFC championship belt as proof.

For his part, Silva has called out Sonnen for disrespecting him and his country. He has also gone on record stating his beliefs that Sonnen does not deserve another shot at his crown.

Unfortunately for Anderson, but to the delight of MMA fans, a rematch is set to go down on June 23. On the bright side for Silva, the bout will occur in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in what potentially may be the biggest event in the sport's history.

The Sonnen-Silva rivalry is characterized by one man's big mouth more than anything else. But the hyping that Sonnen is so well-known for does not diminish what the conflict truly is—two of the best middleweights in the world poised to re-enact a battle that was one of the most entertaining bouts in recent memory.

4: Jon Jones vs. Rashad Evans

Now this is a rivalry with two willing participants! 

The well-documented case of training partners turned best buds, turned awkward moment, turned dislike, turned hatred, turned all-time great MMA feud has been long in the making.

Much as the Tito Ortiz-Chuck Liddell feud began, this one was born from dissimilar opinions of what the role of the champion's friend should be when he happens to compete in the same division as the champ.

When Evans held the UFC light-heavyweight title, Jones went on record, stating that he would fight his friend if it were for the belt. This came as a surprise to Evans, who lashed out at Jones. The whole mess quickly deteriorated into the sort name-calling and accusations usually reserved for the playground. 

The hatred has been kept simmering just as the anticipation has. The bout to settle the score has been delayed twice since the animosity was born: once delayed because of an injury to Evans; once delayed because of an injury to Jones.

In a twist of irony, it will be Jones who enters the fight as champion, Evans as challenger. Jones has looked unstoppable during his meteoric rise to UFC stardom, but Evans swears he has the foil to make "Bones" look human after all.

Though this feud is still in its infantile stages, it has the makings of becoming a classic. If the fight is hotly contested, you better believe it won't be one and done.

3: Wanderlei Silva vs. Quinton Jackson

Between November 2003, and October 2004, Wanderlei Silva and Quinton "Rampage" Jackson fought twice under the Pride FC banner. Those fights remain two of the most heated, most aggressive battles ever fought in the name of mixed martial arts.

It was during that time that Wanderlei was at the top of his game, brutalizing opponents night after night. Meanwhile, Rampage had established himself as a serious threat at 205 pounds, coming off a win over the UFC's Chuck Liddell. 

Both of the fights the two legends put on in Japan ended with a barrage of knees from Silva, which caused Rampage to crumpled into a heap in the ring.

UFC 92 was the third installment of the trilogy and featured some back-and-forth trash talking during the lead-up to the match. This time, it was Jackson who emerged victorious, landing a violent hook that sent the Brazilian in to a state of unconsciousness.

While the victory for Jackson closes the gap, it is notable that the win came against a clearly over-the-hill Silva. Nonetheless, the fight produced one more spectacular finish in a series that will account for four of the best rounds in MMA history.

2: Randy Couture vs. Fedor Emelianenko

Randy Couture and Fedor Emelianenko will be remembered as two of the best fighters to have graced the sport of MMA. The rivalry between them was harrowing, bitterly contested and inconclusive.

And, of course, it was non-existent.

That the two warriors never entered a cage or ring together only makes the rivalry more real, more meaningful, more timeless.

While Couture was making an improbable run through the UFC's heavyweight class, Fedor was busy finishing his seven-year reign over the top talent in Japan. In natural order, a debate sprang: Who would win between Couture and Fedor?

While the fight navigated a fine line between fantasy and reality, it never penetrated the latter, leaving fans to wonder, wonder, wonder. 

Still, with Couture retired and Fedor long past his prime, fans and analysts like to opine about who would have won that fight. But in a way, not knowing makes it all the sweeter.

There was more to the rivalry than the two men fighting one another. The idea pitted the best of the UFC vs. the best of Pride, Sambo vs. Greco-Roman wrestling and the ultimate underdog vs. the ultimate legend.

During a recent interview on The Score, Couture summed up his feelings on missing the opportunity to compete against Fedor.

"

It is what it is, I don’t have any regrets. I wish then, when we were both kind of at our peak, if it would have happened it would have been something special, it just didn’t— the cards didn’t come out that way.

"

At least we'll always have arguments. There are some things man was just not meant to know.

1: Kazushi Sakuraba vs. the Gracies

Royce Gracie went 12-0 through the first five UFC events before testing the Pride waters that were being dominated by Japanese submission wrestler Kazushi Sakuraba.

After faltering in his MMA debut, Sakuraba positioned himself at the pinnacle of the Japanese fight scene by racking up nine wins, a draw and a no-contest. One of those wins happened to be over a member of the fabled Gracie clan.

Royler Gracie made the jump to MMA two-and-a-half-years after his brother Royce, but found similar success, posting three submissions over his first three bouts. 

Then he fought Sakuraba and the rest, as they say, is history.

The Japanese star mangled Royler's arm and drew the ire of famed brother Royce. The legendary Gracie met with Sakuraba to exact revenge for the family name, but could do no better than fight to a standstill.

On Gracie's request, the bout was to only end via submission or knockout. There was no time limit to the fight. This decision seemingly backfired, as it was the Gracie corner that threw in the towel at the end of Round 6, mostly because of their fighter's exhaustion.

Renzo then tried his luck against Sakuraba, but suffered the same fate as Royler. Ryan gave it a whirl, but lost a decision.

Victory finally came to the Gracie family when Royce defeated Sakuraba, who had since become known as "The Gracie Hunter." The 2007 win exacted revenge on the man who had begun terrorizing the family name eight years prior.

Or so it seemed.

After the bout, Gracie tested positive for Nandrolone, an anabolic steroid. He refuted the allegations, but his squeaky-clean name was forever marred, all for the sake of a controversial decision-win over an aged legend.

The Gracie family has meant so much to the sport of MMA, and Sakuraba stands as the one nut they could not collectively crack. The rivalry remains the greatest in MMA history.