UFC 133 Evans vs. Ortiz and the Best UFC Feuds of All Time

We have recently learned Rashad Evans finally has an opponent at UFC 133. The opponent is none other than “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy,” Tito Ortiz.

This fight is a rematch of their 2007 fight that ended in a draw after Ortiz was deducted a point for grabbing the fence. The two light heavyweights bickered before the event and it certainly did not stop after their controversial ending. For whatever reason, the UFC did not capitalize on the budding feud and book a rematch.

With Evans/Ortiz 2 on the horizon, I thought it would be fun to look at the best UFC feuds of all time. Of course, this is only my opinion, and the feuds are ones that I found most entertaining. Who doesn’t love two guys who can’t stand each about to beat the living hell out of each other? I am sure I will have left some of your favorite rivalries out so don’t pelt me with rotten tomatoes if they don’t make the list.

Let’s take a look, shall we?

Rules

Since this is a completely subjective list that could easily turn into a 50-page slideshow, I am going to lay some ground rules.

First, I will be only listing 10 rivalries. The reason why, you ask? This column is titled the best feuds of all time, meaning that the word "best" becomes devalued if there are 50 rivalries listed.

Second, I will only be looking at feuds that happened in the UFC. If I were to include rivalries from PRIDE, Strikeforce, Elite XC and the IFL, then there is no way I would be able to keep the list to just 10.

And last but not least, the fighters had to have fought at least once.

This may be a cop out, but I will be listing these in no particular order. Since I highly doubt you readers care about my rankings as much as the actual rivalries, I don’t think you will be too disappointed. However, I will rank my top three in order, just so it isn’t a complete cop out.

Honorable Mentions

Since I am only mentioning UFC feuds, I figured I would list some other memorable feuds from other promotions. Again, in no particular order:

1. Nick Diaz vs. Jason “Mayhem” Miller

2. Frank Shamrock vs. Phil Baroni

3. Sakuraba vs. The Gracie Family

4. Chute Box vs. Brazilian Top Team

5. Tito Ortiz vs. Dana White

Jens Pulver vs. BJ Penn

This rivalry spanned two fights, six years and a coaching stint on the Ultimate Fighter. It all started when they first fought at UFC 35 for Pulver’s lightweight title. Pulver had just defended his belt against Dennis Hallman and Penn was the unstoppable prodigy (see what I did there) who was laying waste to the division. Penn’s performances were so impressive he was actually heavily favored to beat the reigning champion.

Someone forgot to tell Pulver.

After losing the first two rounds, Pulver roared back to capture the last three rounds to earn a majority decision. Despite the loss, Penn still believed he was the top lightweight in the world and repeatedly challenged Pulver to a rematch. Pulver had nothing to prove by fighting Penn again and did not pursue the rematch. This led Penn to believe Pulver was ducking him.

The rematch happened at The Ultimate Fighter 5 Finale in 2007 after spending the season coaching opposite of each other. The two almost came to blows a few times and the hatred was palpable.

Unfortunately for Pulver, he was unable to recreate his success at UFC 35 and was choked out in the second round. Since the rematch, both men have buried the hatchet and seem to have a friendly relationship. It is the biggest feud ever at 155 and put the lightweight division on the map.

Tito Ortiz vs. Ken Shamrock

Has there ever been anything more hilarious than hearing Ken Shamrock attempt to trash talk? It brought around such gems as “beat you into a living death” and “bench monkey.” Why “bench monkey” is an insult, I’ll never understand.

Anyway, this feud started after Ortiz had beat and taunted some of Shamrock’s Lions Den fighters. This led to Shamrock challenging Ortiz for Tito’s light heavyweight title and the beginning of their trilogy. Ortiz beat Shamrock in the fourth round of their title fight, but things really started to pick up when they coached Season Three of The Ultimate Fighter.

Shamrock did what no fighter has been able to do: make Tito the good guy. Shamrock was so ridiculous that he actually came across as the heel. While Shamrock hurled what he called insults, Tito actually took interest in his fighters and came across as a caring coach.

The two met twice after the reality series, with Ortiz winning via first-round TKO both times. It is perhaps the most one-sided rivalry in all of MMA and it definitely was one of the funniest.

Wanderlei Silva vs. Quinton Jackson

Technically, two-thirds of this feud happened in PRIDE, but the last fight happened in the UFC so it makes the list. The two had faced off twice before in Japan, and the results did not favor Rampage. Not only did Jackson get stopped in both fights, he was on the receiving end of one of the most brutal knockouts ever.

Silva had kneed Rampage into oblivion and Jackson fell face first, unconscious mind you, through the ropes. The image of Jackson’s body swaying halfway out of the ring serves as a reminder of what kind of killer Wanderlei was in his prime.

The two met for a third time in 2008. There was plenty of trash talk in the buildup to the fight and the two shared an intense stare-down at the weigh-ins. This time, Silva was on the receiving end of the knockout. Jackson landed a short left hook that floored Silva and Jackson was awarded the knockout.

Three fights, three knockouts. I would expect nothing less between these two.

Georges St-Pierre vs. BJ Penn

Penn graces this list a second time for his series of fights with another fan favorite. This time, it is against Canadian superstar GSP.

The two first fought in 2006 to crown the next challenger for Matt Hughes’ welterweight title. After three hard-fought rounds, St-Pierre was awarded a controversial split decision. Not surprisingly, Penn thought he had done enough to win and campaigned for a rematch for years.

The two finally met in the first super-fight in UFC history. Penn was the UFC Lightweight Champion, moving up to challenge GSP for the welterweight title. After months of hype and the birth of the Primetime series, they finally met at UFC 94.

GSP took Penn down at will and dominated Penn like no other fighter had before. After four rounds of destruction, Penn’s corner threw in the towel. The fight, however, was not without controversy. Penn claimed that GSP was greasing, nullifying his legendary guard.

Penn is once again campaigning for a rematch, but due to the beating he suffered in the last fight, it is highly unlikely. Controversy or not, GSP/Penn is one the most high-profile feuds ever in the UFC.

Tito Ortiz vs. Chuck Liddell

The feud helped thrust the UFC into mainstream notoriety. Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz have met twice inside the Octagon with the same result—Chuck Liddell by TKO. This rivalry has quite the interesting back story.

Ortiz and Liddell were once friends before they were the best in the 205-pound division. Once Tito won the light heavyweight title, he seemed to do everything in his power to avoid Liddell. This burned some bridges between the former friends, ones that never got rebuilt. After Tito lost his title to Couture, he finally met Liddell in the Octagon. Liddell unleashed a flurry of punches against the cage that sent Tito crumpling to the mat, giving Liddell the win.

They met a second time, with Liddell being the reigning champion this time. Time didn’t change much as Liddell beat Ortiz again by TKO.

A third meeting between the bitter rivals was scheduled after the two coached TUF 12. However, Ortiz pulled out of the fight with neck and back injuries. With Liddell’s fading chin and Tito’s recent resurgence, who knows what would have happened? We do know that their feud broke UFC records and established both men as bona fide stars.

Brock Lesnar vs. Frank Mir

Following the trend of rematches, Frank Mir and Brock Lesnar had/have one of the most intense rivalries ever in the UFC. It started when Mir welcomed Lesnar to the Octagon in the latter’s UFC debut. Lesnar battered Mir with ground-and-pound before ultimately succumbing to a knee bar in the first round.

Fast-forward a year-and-a-half and both men were UFC champions. Mir became the first man to stop Minotauro Nogueira to win the interim title and Lesnar TKO’d Randy Couture to claim the “real” heavyweight title. Lesnar and Mir would meet again at UFC 100 to unify the heavyweight titles.

The smack talk and hype for this fight were tremendous. Lesnar promised revenge and to strip Mir of his “make-believe belt.” Mir gloated about his previous victory and Lesnar’s inexperience in MMA.

The fight itself saw a much more controlled Lesnar pound out Mir in the second round to unify the titles and avenge his only loss. What came after was simply surreal. Lesnar got in Mir’s bloody face after the fight to further rub in his win. He then proceeded to flip off the fans, insult a major sponsor and tell the world what he planned on doing to his wife.

The biggest PPV in MMA ended with a bang to say the least. Rubber match anyone?

Matt Serra vs. Matt Hughes

The battle of the Matts spanned over not one, but two seasons of The Ultimate Fighter. While Serra was a contestant on Season 4, Hughes was one of the guest coaches. The difference in personalities was clearly seen then, but there problems didn’t manifest until after the season.

When Serra shocked the world to defeat GSP for the welterweight title, nobody was happier than Matt Hughes. Hughes was the next challenger for Serra’s newly won title and thought his odds of a third title reign just dramatically increased.

Serra was not amused and voiced his opinions of Hughes resembling a certain part of the male anatomy. With the title shot, animosity and polar-opposite personas, the two were booked to coach TUF Season 6. While Hughes and Serra never got to Rashad/Rampage levels, they definitely voiced their mutual dislike.

When the two finally met in the Octagon a year after they were scheduled to fight (Serra suffered a back injury), the crowd was still electric. After losing the first round, Hughes rallied back to win the last two to earn a close decision. Both men hugged after the fight and put an end to their heated rivalry.

3) Chuck Liddell vs. Wanderlei Silva

Chuck Liddell vs. Wanderlei Silva. The Iceman vs. The Axe Murderer.

This is the fight MMA fans had wanted to see for ages. Liddell was the longtime UFC Light Heavyweight Champion. Silva was the PRIDE Middleweight Champion for what seemed like forever. Fans dreamed of the day when these two feared strikers would lock horns and prove who the dominant man was at 205 (or 203). Both men wanted the fight, but promotional obstacles could not be worked out.

When Silva and Liddell finally met in the cage, neither was a champion and both were riding two-fight losing streaks. That didn’t matter though. Fans wanted to see this fight for years and the recent decline of Silva and Liddell didn’t matter.

It is rare for a fight with so much buildup to live up to the hype, but this fight delivered in spades. For three rounds, they winged haymakers at each other. It was nonstop action for 15 minutes that had the deafening crowd on their feet. After it was over, it was clear Liddell had won a decision but it almost was irrelevant. Fans got exactly what they wanted and an instant classic was born.

2) Rashad Evans vs. Quinton Rampage Jackson

The highest-rated season of The Ultimate Fighter was due to the verbal sparring between Rampage Jackson and Rashad Evans. Sure, having Kimbo Slice on the season didn’t hurt, but fans tuned in every week to see Evans and Jackson nose to nose, ready to throw down.

The rivalry stemmed from a post-fight stare-down a few months before the reality show. Jackson had just defeated Evans’ training partner, Keith Jardine, and was next in line to face Evans for the light heavyweight championship. The two jawed off at each other and voila—a rivalry was born.

However, Jackson couldn’t make the necessary turnaround to fight Evans in time. Instead, Evans fought Lyoto Machida and was knocked out in the second round.

One season on TUF, one Primetime series and a slew of interviews full of insults and hatred fueled Rampage vs. Evans to over a million PPV buys. Unlike Liddell/Silva, this one was a big-time snoozer. Both men rocked the other but most of the fight was a Evans takedown clinic. For what it's worth, this was the first card to be headlined by two African-American fighters and one of the few to break a million PPV buys.

1) Chael Sonnen vs. Anderson Silva

Anyone who says any other fight should get the top spot does not have a sense of humor. Sonnen is credited to turning a fight with little fan interest into one of the most anticipated fights of the year. Sound bite after sound bite, Sonnen lured us into either believing he had a chance to dethrone Anderson, or hoping Silva would silence him.

This wasn’t just trash talk; this was much more entertaining.

From mocking Silva’s character, the Nogueira brothers' jiu-jitsu, the whole country of Brazil and just about everything else, Sonnen pulled no punches. I hope Ken Shamrock was taking notes.

By now we all know how the fight played out. Chael Sonnen dominated Anderson Silva for 23 minutes only to lose by a Silva Hail Mary triangle choke in the waning minutes. Sonnen not only talked the talk, he walked the walk. The fight itself was a classic example how anything can happen in MMA.

The real reason this feud takes the top spot? It’s not over yet.

Sonnen is scheduled to fight Brian Stann this fall, which is a great stylistic match up for him. Stann’s takedown defense is not his strongpoint and I have no reason to believe he will have patched that hole in time for Sonnen. If Silva gets past Yushin Okami next month, he will not have a clear-cut contender.

Is it really so hard to believe that Chael is only one win away from rematching Silva ?