10 Most Heated Rivalries In UFC History
1. Tito Ortiz Vs. Ken Shamrock
Considering his nickname of The Huntington Beach Bad Boy, it should come as no real surprise to see Tito Ortiz featuring more than once on this list.
During the UFC boom of the early 2000s, Tito Ortiz and Ken Shamrock were both absolutely pivotal in bringing new eyes to the sport of MMA. And a career highlight for both men - in terms of exposure and spotlight - was their legendary rivalry against each other.
The real launching point for this rivalry came at UFC 18 and UFC 19 as Ortiz got wins over Shamrock's Lion's Den teammates Jerry Bohlander and Guy Mezger respectively. Not content with simply getting the W, Tito would wear T-shirts disrespecting Lion's Den and thought nothing of giving two middle fingers to the group.
Shamrock completely lost his sh*t about this and the two were instantly on a collision course. Said collision would occur at UFC 40 in 2002, with Ortiz getting the win on that night in what many fans and critics credit as being the moment that UFC really pierced the mainstream.
The pair would meet again a further two times, and Ortiz got Round 1 TKO wins in both contests.
Ken Shamrock may not have been successful against Tito Ortiz during their battles, but the pair's utter hatred for each other was a ginormous success for the UFC - not least in how that first fight brought in a record-setting gate of over $1.5 million for the company.