The Greatest MMA Column: 11.29.08: My Five Favorite UFC Fights

Posted by Dan Plunkett on 11.29.2008

After UFC 91 was billed as the biggest fight in UFC history, it got me thinking as to what my favorite fights were. So here they are, and in list form. All that and... well pretty much just that, in what Sean Sherk's action figure calls "The Greatest MMA Column!"

Over its 15 year history, the UFC has hosted a countless number of fights. I say countless because I don't feel like it nor do I have the time to count them. Many of the fights have been greatly anticipated, many of them have been good fights, some of them have been both. Based off of that judging criteria, here are my favorite UFC fights.

5. UFC 46- Hughes vs. Penn: At the time this fight happened, there was no bigger than this. Matt Hughes was the best fighter in the world, while BJ Penn was the best lightweight in the world and was also a top pound for pound fighter. For a modern comparison, picture Fedor going up against Andeson Silva, or even the upcoming St. Pierre vs. Penn 2. Penn had not been able to capture the UFC Lightweight Championship, losing to Jens Pulver at UFC 35 and drawing with Caol Uno at UFC 41, so he moved up in weight to fight Hughes, who had successfully defended his UFC Welterweight Championship 5 times in a row. The fight wasn't that great, Hughes spent the majority of the first round on his back, where with 54 seconds left BJ hit him with a big right hand that stunned Hughes. Soon after, BJ took his back and sunk in the rear naked choke. While there isn't much evidence to say he wasn't before the fight, BJ went crazy after this fight. Not a bad crazy, but not really a good one either. BJ left the UFC after this fight, and signed with K-1. Hughes regained the UFC Welterweight Championship after beating Georges St. Pierre, and had another dominant title reign.

Matt Hughes vs. BJ Penn 1

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4. UFC 47- Chuck Liddell vs. Tito Ortiz: The fight was years in the making, Ortiz had done everything he could to stop this fight from happening, Liddell had been the rightful #1 contender since he beat Vitor Belfort at UFC 37.5. At first Ortiz seemed as though he would fight Liddell, despite their past as training partners. But after UFC 40, where Liddell stepped aside to let Ken Shamrock fight Ortiz, Ortiz was reluctant to fight Liddell, saying that he didn't think their friendship was worth what they were getting paid. After that, Ortiz refused to fight Liddell, so the UFC set up an interim title bout between Liddell and Randy Couture, which Couture won. Then Ortiz came back and was spanked (literally) by Couture for 5 rounds. Then finally, Ortiz agreed to meet Chuck Liddell at UFC 47 on April 2, 2004. The fighters spent nearly the entire 1st round feeling each other out, until they began to engage at the end of the round, where the advantage went to Liddell. Then, just 38 seconds into the 2nd round, Liddell finished Tito Ortiz with one of the most brutal combination of punches I've ever seen. After the fight, Liddell soared to superstardom, while Ortiz lived up to his bad boy reputation while winning 5 straight bouts earning himself another shot at Liddell, now the champion. In the biggest PPV in MMA history, Liddell once again knocked out Tito Ortiz.

Tito Ortiz vs. Chuck Liddell 1


3. UFC 68- Tim Sylvia vs. Randy Couture: After 1 year away from fighting, and 5 years away from the heavyweight division, Randy Couture returned to take on UFC Heavyweight Champion Tim Sylvia. Couture was once again the underdog coming into this fight, having gone 1-2 in his last 3 fights, which were in the light-heavyweight division, and being knocked out in both of those losses. But like he does best, Couture shocked the world, he dropped Sylvia with the first punch he threw, and that set the tone for the night. Couture dominated Sylvia everywhere. The atmosphere surrounding this fight was incredible; it was the loudest crowd I had ever heard at an MMA event. After this fight, Couture beat Gabriel Gonzaga and then went into a legal dispute with the UFC, only to come back in a losing effort against Brock Lesnar, in the 2nd biggest MMA PPV ever. Sylvia beat Brandon Vera at UFC 77, and then lost to "Minotauro" Nogueira at UFC 81. Then he was destroyed by Fedor Emelianenko and hasn't been seen since.

Tim Sylvia vs. Randy Couture

2. UFC 58- BJ Penn vs. Georges St. Pierre: Okay, maybe I'm a little biased since they're two of my of my favorite fighters, but I love this fight. After fighting in weight classes he should never have dreamed of fighting in, BJ Penn finally returned to the UFC. Georges St. Pierre had just beaten Frank Trigg and Sean Sherk. This fight was for the #1 contender spot for Matt Hughes' Welterweight Championship, which he had regained by defeating St. Pierre for the vacant title with a last second armbar. The 1st round was won by BJ Penn, he out-struck St. Pierre after an (alleged) eye poke. After that, St. Pierre turned it on by out-striking and scoring takedowns for the split-decision victory. The fight has sparked much controversy between fans of the two fighters, but I feel St. Pierre rightfully took the decision. After this fight, St. Pierre could not fight Matt Hughes due to injury, so BJ stepped in and won the first 2 rounds against Hughes, before being TKO's in the 3rd round. St. Pierre got his title shot though, and at UFC 65 he dominated Matt Hughes to take the UFC Welterweight Championship. After a slip up against Matt Serra, St. Pierre has regained his title and has dominated ever fight he has had. BJ Penn moved back down to his natural weight class of lightweight and won the UFC Lightweight Championship. This isn't all for these two though, they'll lock horns once again at UFC 94.

Penn vs. St. Pierre 1, Round 1

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1. UFC 79- Chuck Liddell vs. Wanderlei Silva: A dream fight that was finally realized, feared strikers Chuck Liddell and Wanderlei Silva met at UFC 79. Wanderlei dominated the 205 pound division in Pride, while Liddell dominated the UFC's 205 pound division. Both fighters were coming off of 2 consecutive losses, so their backs were against the wall to not only win, but to deliver as great a fight as the fans expected. And they delivered that great fight, but only Liddell walked away with the win. The slugged it out for 3 rounds with both men scoring knockdowns, and Liddell even using his oft-forgotten wrestling skills against "the axe murderer." It was an epic fight which fans will never forget. After the fight, Liddell was brutally knocked out by Rashad Evans, while Silva brutally knocked out Keith Jardine.

Chuck Liddell vs. Wanderlei Silva


That's it for this week, no fight of the week since I put up 4 full fights to watch, well, at least until they're taken down. I greatly appreciate you taking the time to read "The Greatest MMA Column," as always, here is the latest edition of MMA Live.