Top 10 Greatest Fights In Combat Sports History! (Striking Edition)
Striking has always been recognized as the most entertaining aspect of combat sports. Basically, nothing beats the two elite strikers stepping into the Ring/Octagon “with the shield or on it” attitude and simply go at each other from the first second.
Speaking of the greatest fights represents a never-ending argument that is naturally based on subjective feelings. For some people, revenue, hype and PPV buys are the main criteria, while for the others it’s a display of technique and skills. I always looked at it this way: Which fight would I recommend to a friend as his introduction to certain martial art?
As you would expect, we’re about to see some violence and wars below! For the purpose of our list, we covered all mainstream striking martial arts by picking the most memorable wars from Kickboxing, Boxing and MMA.
10. Joe Schilling vs. Simon Marcus — GLORY 17: Last Man Standing
June 21, 2014 — Inglewood, California, US
Although Glory represents just a fraction of what kickboxing once was, every once in a while we can see wars only reminding us of how brutal this martial art actually is! In modern-day kickboxing, Joe Schilling (23–9) has been known as one of the most exciting and talented fighters in the World.
During the Glory 17 Middleweight tournament, he faced an equally talented Simon Marcus (49–5–2) in the quarter-finals, and the fans expected nothing but fireworks. Schilling outworked the Canadian in the first round but after being dropped in the second and realizing he’s behind, Schilling entered the beast mode! Although he comfortably won the third, judges decided to send the fight into an extension round. From the first second, both fighters started exploding and throwing everything they’ve got left inside! Just as we all thought it will slip into the hands of the judges, Joe Shilling caught Marcus coming in with the perfect right hook, knocking the Canadian out in the last 15 seconds!
9. Robbie Lawler vs. Rory MacDonald — UFC 189
July 11, 2015 — Las Vegas, Nevada, US
Compiling a list of brutal striking wars just can’t go down without the rematch between the “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (28–14) and the Canadian star, Rory MacDonald (21–8–1) for the UFC Lightweight title! It’s not a surprise seeing the former Lightweight champion receiving a spot on our list, the guy was in so many wars that you can randomly pick any fight from his record and it would meet all the necessary requirements! On the other hand, MacDonald is a student of the great George St. Pierre and is known for the same calculated and “safe” approach to the fighting game. However, he made an exception for this one by stepping into Robbie’s World and leaving it all inside the Octagon! Although he is probably still questioning this decision, fans around the World simply love every second of it!
8. Mike Zambidis vs. Chahid Oulad El Hadj — K-1 World MAX 2010 Final 16
October 3, 2010 — Seoul, South Korea
K-1 is arguably the biggest source of pure Dutch-style striking wars and terrific fights! A matchup between the multiple kickboxing World champion Mike Zambidis (157–24) and the Moroccan — Dutch star Chahid Oulad (26–21) was supposed to be just another day at the office for the Greek fighter. The “Pitbull” just needed to put his experience to work, and the victory is right around the corner. Easy work we have all thought…Well, all you need to review are the first 10 seconds to understand how wrong we’ve all been.
Watching both fighters blasting each other for 12 minutes (three plus one extra round), holding their ground in the pocket, absorbing a massive amount of punishment and knocking each other down many times is completely insane! We can’t escape but asking ourselves, HOW?! Most of the other fighters would fall after the first 10 seconds!
7. Jongsanan Fairtex vs. Sakmongkol Sithchuchok
May 4, 1993 — Bangkok, Thailand
Thailand and their bellowed “art of eight limbs” are the home of the elite striking for almost half a century. Today, if you’re willing to instantly improve or brush the striking arsenal, just book a ticket to Thailand and join one of their many Muay Thai facilities!
Stadium tournaments are traditionally known as the ultimate test for toughness, killer instincts and slugfest. Basically, everything we’re looking for! Among all the great fights, picking one and placing it above the others represents a very tough call to make.
However, what occurred between two old rivals in Fairtex and Sithchuchok (231–20) at the famous Lumpinee Stadium could only be seen in vintage Asian movies! Their 5th meeting was so brutal that it became known in the Muay Thai community as the “Elbow Fight”! In the second round, both fighters started exploding with vicious elbows, and it seems like they’ve landed a million strikes at each other. How they were able to shake everything off and continue, we’ll never know.
6. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua vs. Dan “Hendo” Henderson - UFC 139: Shogun vs. Henderson
November 19, 2011 — San Jose, California, US
With their UFC careers on the line, the two veterans of the PRIDE promotion have decided to leave the tactics in the locker room and put their hearts and souls inside the Octagon! The legendary matchup was so violent, dramatic and full of twists that we can reasonably expect a movie about it coming in the future!
“I have so much respect for both of those guys to dig down that deep in a five round fight. That was like our Ali-Frazier three you know what I mean, it was incredible.” — UFC President Dana White (source)
Even when the fight hit the mat at one point, neither fighter was bothering securing the position or clasping a moment to snatch a couple of deep breaths. Instead, they’ve kept on throwing punch after punch. Dan Henderson (32–15) was a better man throughout the first three rounds and had a hard time putting Rua (26–11–1) out even with the famous H-Bomb continuously landing. However, coming into the fourth, he looked gassed and tired! Shogun did everything he could to capitalize on this and secure the fourth and fifth round, but Hendo was able to survive the wild flurries and win the unanimous decision.
The fact that both fighters immediately went to the hospital, speaks a lot about the brutality of this fight!
5. Erik Morales vs. Marco Antonio Barrera
Mexican boxers have always been known as the most dangerous ones. What makes them so special are the natural toughness, aggressiveness and warrior mentality! Now, imagine two wild and though as nails Mexicans going at each other from the first second. Well, instead of imagining, make yourself comfortable and pull up the brutal war between Erik Morales (52–9) and Marco Antonio Barrera (67–7)!
Basically, both fighters threw their defense out of the window, and we saw fists flying from the first seconds. Considering the number of shots landed from both sides, it’s shocking to remember that we’ve seen only one knockdown! Although Barrera was able to put Morales on his butt, Morales took the controversial split decision. However, Barrera would bounce back in their next two meetings, scoring back to back victories to win the memorable trilogy war!
4. Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard II — UFC 125
January 1, 2011 — Las Vegas, Nevada, US
Frankie Edgar (23–7–1) was in so many wars throughout his career that he had definitely gained a bunch of Rocky stories for future generations. One of these stories must include the second fight against his old rival, Gray Maynard (13–7–1–1).
In this five rounds battle for the Lightweight belt, Maynard dominated the opening rounds by knocking Edgar down several times and being just seconds away from scoring a finish. Even the referee Yves Lavigne considered stepping in on a few occasions! However, Edgar is known for his toughness and ability to absorb a lot of punishment. As a true warrior, he picked himself up in the mid-rounds and bounced back by putting on a show!
Edgar managed to retain his Lightweight belt as the judges declared a draw. However, many fans firmly believe Edgar has done enough to secure a decisive victory. The two completed the trilogy with another war at UFC 136 but this time, Edgar closed the show in the 4th round!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YP5wSzfieBs
3. SUGAR RAY ROBINSON VS. JAKE LA MOTTA
February 13, 1951 — Chicago, US
The rivalry between Robinson (175–19–6) and La Motta (83–19–4) is probably one of the most prominent in combat sports history! The two have fought an incredible five times!
In the 60s, La Motta represented a walking definition of violence and aggressiveness. Also recognized as “The Reigning Bull”, Motta always stepped into the Ring ready to die and go through war. All of his battles with Robinson were special, but the 13 round war for the Middleweight title held at Chicago Stadium received a nickname “St. Valentine’s Day Massacre” for many reasons. Both fighters came guns blazing at each other from the first bell, and they’ve never lifted the foot of the gas pedal for the next 13 rounds. In this round, Robinson put everything he had in the one last barrage of punches which lasted for over 30 seconds! Although Motta looked exhausted and hurt, he simply refused to go down! Instead, the referee stepped in and literally saved him from receiving career-ending punishment! To bring you closer to his warrior mentality, just look at his statement shortly after the fight:
“If the referee had held up another 30 more seconds, Sugar Ray would have collapsed from hitting me.” — Jake “The Raging Bull” La Motta
2. Fedor Emelianenko vs. Mirko Filipovic — Pride Final Conflict 2005
August 28, 2005 — Saitama, Japan
Before the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) hit the mainstream rise, the Japanese “Pride” was considered as the best MMA promotion in the World. PRIDE was a home of the most talented fighters like Wanderlei Silva, Kazuhi Sakuraba, Rampage Jackson, and many others. Plus, the Japanese promotion has seen some of the most memorable knockouts and amazing fights. That said, the clash between one of the greatest Heavyweights of all time, Fedor Emelianenko (38–6–0–1) and Croatian kickboxer Mirko Filipovic (38–11–2–1) will go down in history as the greatest one!
Coming into the fight, both fighters were in their prime and on the collision course for a long time. Although Emelianenko received a lot of punishment, he was able to execute the perfect game plan against the fearsome striker and take home the unanimous decision victory!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uNyETWF-n10
1. MICKY WARD VS. ARTURO GATTI
May 18, 2002 — Mohegan Sun Area, Montville, Connecticut, US
If there are any studies out there, that explain what drives the minds of two elite boxers to throw their game plans and defense out of the window and step into the slugfest from the first second, we’re more than interested to know! The first meeting of Micky Ward and Arturo Gatti is a classic example of these phenomena and it is presumably the greatest boxing fight in history as well. What’s more, both fighters stepped into the Ring wearing “Cleto Reyes” gloves that are known for generating a lot of power!
“As James Elroy has written, this is one of those fights that’s balls-to-the-wall.” — source
Throughout the fight, both men enjoyed their moments and to say they landed great shots on each other is an understatement! Both fighters obviously came with a mission to prove their toughness and make a statement by knocking each other out. However, the problem was obvious. They were able to bite down on their mouthpiece, stay in the pocket and simply leave it all on the floor without backing up! Although Ward ended up winning a unanimous decision, the biggest winner is the audience who had the privilege to watch this spectacle.
