anything like ali\frazier 3?

Half the board will hate this, but watch Griffin-Bonnar if you haven't. Nowhere near Ali-Frazier in skill level, but it was a blood and guts back and forth war of attrition with immense historical significance.

And recently the Shogun Rua - Dan Henderson match was very dramatic. Both fighters are unquestioned greats of the sport, though neither is on the top of the tree at the moment or likely to be again. Still, both are certainly relevant fighters. Not all action all the way through but it features tremendous swings in momentum and lots of suspense. :good

:hat

 

Yeah, Ali-Frazier was a perfect storm. We could go back to the PRIDE era, but that's really a different sport/era of MMA entirely. The sport simply didn't have enough significance to produce an Ali-Frazier. In MMA's modern age, there hasn't been a true equivalent. Griffin-Bonnar is the closest because of its historical impact and it really was an exciting war, but nobody pretends that they were ATG elite fighters.

Although it's worth noting that Bonnar is still coming up with good wins after several years of post-TUF easy living and reduced ambition. And Forrest hung around at the top level for years and ended up as a decorated LHW champion with some good wins over legends of the sport, so it's not like they turned out to be a pair of cans. :good

:hat

 

The Aoki-Hansen trilogy is far more similar than Boner-Griffin, it is the best call.

This content is protected

This content is protected

This content is protected

This content is protected

 

nope.

 

I suspect that some MMA fights and rivalries will gain in stature over time. GSP-Hughes comes to mind.

Also depending on how the rematch goes (if it happens in a timely fashion) Silva vs Sonnen might well be looked back on as a legendary rivalry.

:hat

 

No. 5 rounds is enough. If you haven't gotten the better of your opponent over 25 minutes, then he deserves to hear the final bell.

:hat

 

Only one fight between them is needed anyway though. This fight is only going to go in a couple of possible directions. Either Chael gets stopped again somewhere along the line, or Anderson gets wrestle****ed for 25 minutes instead of 23. :yep

If Silva knocks Chael out or submits him again, then no rubber match because Chael is 0-2, he had two chances and missed them both.

If Chael does the same damn thing as he did last time except adds on another 2 minutes without getting caught in a sub, then no rubber match. There's never a rubber match if the "rounds won" column after two fights reads 9-1 in one guy's favour.

But yeah, if they rematch and Sonnen dominates him again and takes a 5-0 decision, then Silva-Sonnen becomes one of the sport's top-tier greatest rivalries. In that scenario, history won't judge Anderson harshly for spending so much time on his back against Chael. Every fighter has a guy or a style that he just plain doesn't match up well with. Anderson is no exception. But even a lopsided defeat would merely elevate the significance of his first victory IMO.

So basically I think that three fights would be too many for those two guys. But one fight is clearly not enough.

:hat

 

There's nothing like Ali/Frazier 3 - in boxing or MMA. That fight stands apart - it is the pinnacle of combat sports that probably will never be topped.

 

Nah not really. I think Hendo/Rua would be the closest.