7 Fights That Defined Mixed Martial Arts

The first fight in this list that was a rematch, Chuck Liddell vs. Tito Ortiz was one of the UFC’s most popular rivalries as the promotion emerged from the dark ages of MMA and slowly moved towards mainstream popularity.

Following their first encounter in 2004, Liddell had become hugely popular, defeating Randy Couture to capture the Light Heavyweight Title before successfully defending his belt three times, each time by knockout. Despite losing their first fight, Ortiz was also hugely popular and had reeled off five consecutive victories leading into the rematch. The final two wins of the streak were consecutive finishes of Ken Shamrock, with the latter setting an MMA television rating record in the US. The enormousness of a Liddell vs. Ortiz rematch was not lost on the UFC’s ever-growing fan base. While the first fight at UFC 47 drew just over 100,000 pay per view buys, the rematch at UFC 67 sold 1,100,000, becoming the first to reach the landmark one million buys.

Both men started the fight tentatively, though Liddell began to take control at the end of the first, by dropping his opponent and landing vicious follow-up shots. However, the Huntington Beach Bad Boy’s porous striking defence was evident throughout, and Liddell’s accumulative striking proved too much, with the TKO finish coming with just over a minute left in the third round.