5 most heated rivalries in UFC history

The UFC has put on some iconic grudge matches since its inception in 1993. While most fighters are respectful towards their opponents before and after a fight, there have been numerous instances where two individuals who despise one another have locked horns.

Some rivalries are as real as they get. There have been quite a few occasions where former teammates and friends have settled their differences inside the octagon. Meanwhile, fighters who understand the pay-per-view model and the fact that they're in the business of entertainment, rather than sport, often create tension and animosity going into high-profile bouts.

Intriguing storylines, trash talk and antics outside the cage have fueled some of the most iconic rivalries between fighters. On that note, we thought we'd take a look at the five most heated grudge matches in UFC history.

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#5. Brock Lesnar and Frank Mir - UFC heavyweight division

Frank Mir became the UFC heavyweight champion in 2004 following a spectacular submission win over Tim Sylvia. He was later stripped after sustaining multiple injuries following a motorcycle accident. Upon his return, Mir went 2-2 in his next four bouts. Seemingly one win away from a championship opportunity, he took on WWE superstar and UFC debutant Brock Lesnar in his next fight.

Leading up to his fight against Lesnar at UFC 81, Mir ruthlessly belittled Lesnar's accomplishments and combat sports credentials. He slammed the UFC for elevating a pro-wrestler to such a big stage and vowed to end the hype surrounding 'The Beast Incarnate'. He delivered on his promise, submitting the WWE star in just 90 seconds with a kneebar.

Brock Lesnar bounced back from the loss to Frank Mir in emphatic fashion. He defeated Heath Herring via unanimous decision in his next bout to stake his claim for a title shot.

Lesnar subsequently took on Randy Couture for the heavyweight title. He won via TKO to become an undisputed UFC champion. In his first title defense, which went down at UFC 100, he took on Mir in a rematch.

Lesnar dominated Mir in the rematch. He used his humongous frame, unreal athleticism and famed wrestling to completely shut down all of his opponent's attacks. Throughout the bout, the heavyweight champ stayed composed in top position while raining down heavy ground-and-pound strikes.

Less than two minutes into the second round, Lesnar pinned Mir up against the fence and proceeded to land some powerful strikes, forcing the referee to call a halt to the action. The pro-wrestling star's post-fight interview remains one of the most iconic in MMA history. He told Joe Rogan:

"Frank Mir had a horseshoe up his *ss! I told him that a year ago! I pulled that son of a b*tch out, and I beat him over the head with it. Whooooo!"

Watch his post-fight interview below:

Brock Lesnar went on to fight just four more times in the UFC. His two-fight series with Frank Mir remains one of the most iconic rivalries in the world's premier MMA promotion.

Watch the full rematch between Brock Lesnar and Frank Mir below:

#4. Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier - UFC light heavyweight division

The rivalry between future UFC Hall of Famers Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier was incredibly unique. The duo have locked horns twice, with Jones emerging victorious on both occasions. However, Cormier has always held the moral high ground as both their bouts have been marred by controversy.

After their first fight at UFC 182, where Jones secured a unanimous decision win, the light heavyweight champ was stripped after a hit-and-run incident. He was subsequently forced to endure a stint on the sidelines.

Cormier fought for the vacant title against Anthony Johnson soon after, winning via submission to become the light heavyweight champion. Jones returned to action a year after his suspension with an interim title-winning performance against Ovince Saint Preux, setting up a title unification bout with 'DC'.

Going into their highly-anticipated rematch, the bad blood between the light heavyweight duo was incredibly high. During their pre-fight press obligations, both fighters repeatedly chastised one another. Jones incessantly devalued Cormier's championship credentials while 'DC' ridiculed his bitter rival's character and troubles outside the cage.

Watch a compilation of all the trash talk between Cormier and Jones below:

At UFC 214, they locked horns at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Jones came away with a sensational TKO victory on the night after catching Cormier with a thunderous head-kick in the third round. While both fighters showed some sportsmanship inside the octagon moments after the fight, things turned sour a week later.

Jones tested positive for a banned substance. Cormier was reinstated as the UFC light heavyweight champion and went on to defend the belt one more time before going on to win the heavyweight strap. Meanwhile, Jones was forced into another hiatus from the sport and reclaimed his belt with a KO victory over Alexander Gustafsson upon his return.

In his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan following the win over Gustaffson, Jones said:

"Man, I know there a guy who's been calling himself champ-champ [referring to Daniel Cormier]. I mean, what [kind of] guy just gives up his belt because somebody else made it home. Daddy's home, 'DC'. Prove to the fans you're a champ-champ. Come get a taste. I'm here. Get your belt back. I'll be right here."

Watch Jon Jones' post-fight interview with Joe Rogan at UFC 232 below:

Daniel Cormier never returned to the 205 lbs division. Following the conclusion of his iconic trilogy with former heavyweight champ Stipe Miocic, 'DC' retired from MMA. Jon Jones, on the other hand, continued to rule over the light heavyweight division after his two-fight series with Cormier. He vacated the belt in 2020 and has been eyeing the heavyweight title ever since.

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#3. TJ Dillashaw and Cody Garbrandt - UFC bantamweight division

The rivalry between TJ Dillashaw and Cody Garbrandt has to be one of the ugliest yet entertaining feuds MMA fans have ever seen. Their long-running conflict involves every ingredient worthy of a Hollywood screenplay - bad blood, personal history, a scandal, two championship bouts and two knockouts.

Dillashaw and Garbrandt were teammates at Team Alpha Male, a Sacramento-based gym founded by MMA legend Urijah Faber. While the gym enjoyed success, its fighters consistently fell short in championship bouts. Faber himself endured a disappointing defeat to then-bantamweight champion Renan Barao in 2014.

One of the team's coaches, former UFC fighter Duane Ludwig, had a strong relationship with Dillashaw at the time. However, Ludwig revealed his desire to leave the California-based gym and return to his home state of Colorado. This coincided with Dillashaw's incredible championship-winning performance against Barao in 2015.

After Dillashaw defended his title in a rematch against Barao, he left Team Alpha Male and moved to Colorado to train with Ludwig full-time. This obviously caused a rift between the bantamweight champ and his former team. This was around the time that Team Alpha Male's latest export, Cody Garbrandt, enjoyed a scintillating run up the rankings at 135 lbs.

Dillashaw lost the bantamweight title to Dominick Cruz in 2016. This was when numerous sources, including his former coach Urijah Faber, accused him of using PEDs. Of course, he denied the allegations at the time. Subsequently, Garbarndt earned a championship opportunity and dethroned Cruz to become the new king of the bantamweights.

In 2017, TJ Dillashaw was booked to face his former teammate Cody Garbrandt for the bantamweight title. The trash talk between the duo was constant, with Dillashaw even claiming that he used to make Garbrandt cry during their old training sessions together. They even served as opposing coaches on The Ultimate Fighter, which further added fuel to the fire.

The duo locked horns in the main event of UFC 217, one of the promotion's biggest events ever. Dillashaw secured a TKO victory on the night and followed it up with a KO win in the rematch. Following his two losses to Dillashaw, Garbrandt has never quite looked the same. Since the second defeat to his former teammate, 'No Love' has won just one fight.

While retrospectively looking at this rivalry, there's an important caveat to consider. Dillashaw popped for PEDs following his loss to Henry Cejudo in 2019 and was subsequently handed a two-year ban from the octagon. Interestingly, as mentioned earlier, Urijah Faber was accusing his former pupil of using banned substances long before the Cejudo fight, calling into question whether he was clean in the bouts against Garbrandt as well.

Today, they find themselves on opposite ends of the pecking order in the bantamweight division. Dillashaw is arguably one win away from a title shot, while Garbrandt has dropped out of the 135 lbs rankings altogether. At the peak of their intense rivalry, nothing was quite as dramatic as their long-running feud.

#2. Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor - UFC lightweight division

Khabib Nurmagomedov's intense feud with Conor McGregor remains one of the biggest milestones in UFC history. Before 'The Eagle' fought Al Iaquinta for the vacant title in 2018, McGregor famously attacked Nurmagomedov and several other fighters while they were on a bus at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

In the lead-up to their highly-anticipated bout, McGregor relentlessly ridiculed, mocked and belittled Nurmagomedov's family, religion and country. Most notably, 'The Notorious' insulted the Dagestani champion's father, which undoubtedly added to the animosity between the lightweight duo.

Watch a compilation of all the trash talk Conor McGregor directed at Khabib Nurmagomedov below:

As their grudge match edged closer, it became evident that this was going to be the biggest event in UFC history. There were multiple factors surrounding the matchup that led to the amount of attention it received.

Following a bitter and somewhat dark fight week, Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor finally squared off in the main event of UFC 229.

Nurmagomedov remained stoic throughout fight week and brushed off most of McGregor's trash talk. He didn't engage with the the Irishman's mental warfare, but there was an underlying feeling that he was seething on the inside throughout.

During the fight, 'The Eagle' provided a dose of his own signature style of trash talk. The Russian could be heard repeatedly telling McGregor, "Let's talk now!" as he rained down with vicious ground-and-pound strikes.

Nurmagomedov dominated McGregor in the opening ten minutes, using his pressure from the top position to tire out 'The Notorious'. The former two-division champ seemingly found his mojo in the third round, stuffing all of the Dagestani champ's takedown attempts. In the fourth, 'The Eagle' secured a takedown and choked out his bitter rival with a neck-crank to successfully defend his title.

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#1. Colby Covington and Jorge Masvidal - UFC welterweight division

Jorge Masvidal began his professional MMA career way back in 2003. The Miami native initially gained notoriety for his appearances in various unsactioned backyard brawls hosted by former UFC heavyweight and viral sensation Kimbo Slice.

He went on to fight for a number of MMA promotions including the AFC, BoDogFIGHT, Strikeforce, Bellator and of course, the UFC. Masvidal joined the UFC in 2013 and plied his trade in the lightweight division before moving up to welterweight. He was just another fighter on the roster until his historic run in 2019, which saw him defeat Darren Till, Ben Askren and Nate Diaz.

Long before his rise to superstardom, Masvidal befriended one of the newest recruits to his gym, Colby Covington. Covington was a high-level collegiate wrestling standout who joined the American Top Team gym in Florida with intentions of improving his overall MMA game.

The duo were inseparable for many years and even lived together for a period of time. Covington helped 'Gamebred' improve his wrestling while Masvidal assisted 'Chaos' with his striking. They were regularly seen in each other's corner during fights and publicly batted for one another in the media.

Their relationship seemingly started to fall apart after Covington won the interim title, just three years into his UFC run. Masvidal, who has been in the UFC for much longer, always fell short in his attempts to break into the upper echelons of the divisions he competed in.

Following a dispute involving Covington's alleged refusal to pay one of his coaches, who happens to be close to Masvidal, the pair cut ties permanently.

Watch a video compilation that chronicles the relationship between Masvidal and Covington below:

Since their fallout, both Jorge Masvidal and Colby Covington have fought in numerous high-profile bouts in the welterweight division. Both fighters contested for the title twice each, losing to Kamaru Usman every time.

With both fighters coming off losses to Usman, they were booked to square off in a highly-anticipated grudge match at UFC 272.

Throughout fight week, Masvidal and Covington lashed out at one another, saying despicable things about each other's characters, careers and personal lives. Their pre-fight press conference remains one of the weirdest visuals in UFC history as both fighters incessantly bickered with one another, rather than answering the media's questions.

Covington was a massive betting favorite going into the bout and showed why that was as he wiped the floor with Masvidal for five full rounds. 'Chaos' came away with a unanimous decision victory, putting his beef with 'Gamebred' to bed for good. Nevertheless, the duo continued to exchange words moments after the final bell.