10 Most Heated Rivalries In UFC History

4. Chael Sonnen Vs. Anderson Silva

What happens when you get arguably the greatest fighter in the history of MMA going up against the greatest trash-talker in the sport? That’s what fans were given back in August 2010 when Anderson Silva defended the UFC Middleweight Championship against Chael Sonnen at UFC 117.

It was in the build to this fighter, however, that this rivalry went from a standard title defense to something entirely more personal.

This was all because Sonnen decided to play himself up as the bad guy of MMA, with The American Gangster pulling inspiration from the world of pro wrestling as he wasted no opportunity to drop soundbites about how awful Silva was, how bad The Spider’s team was, and how much of a dump the fighter’s homeland of Brazil was.

And just like that, the UFC 117 fight became a can’t-miss event.

To the surprise of many, Sonnen dominated the legendary Silva for four rounds… before getting caught in a triangle choke and tapping out in Round 5.

Not content with that, Chael again began to call out Anderson Silva nearly two years later and a rematch was set for UFC 148. Despite things again becoming hugely heated due to Sonnen’s shots at Silva and Brazil, it was the legendary Spider who once more emerged victorious – this time after a hard knee and punches led to the TKO win in the second round.

Nobody talks the talk quite like Chael Sonnen, and it was the running of his mouth that gave fans a glimpse at a different side of the cooler-than-cool Anderson Silva in the build to both of these fights.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer and Presenter, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund and Eli Roth to Kevin Smith and the Russo Brothers, to Kevin Conroy and Frank Miller, to Bret Hart and Sting, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, and Brian Flynn, to many, many more. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is a long-standing season ticket holder and an FSA Award-winner for his time co-hosting the Fearless in Devotion podcast.