The top 5 most memorable UFC Face-offs in history featuring Nate Diaz, Conor McGregor, Anderson Silva and more
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Top 5 UFC Face-offs
In this feature, we’re talking about the Top 5 most memorable UFC face-offs in history. These are the face-offs backed by incredible stories of drama and hype. Some of them are obvious, some of them may surprise you!
The face-offs are the single most important factor that let the fans stay tuned for the fight throughout the fight week. It’s a promotional mechanism that works right off. You make the people who want to punch each other on the face staring at each other down for a few seconds and boom! There you get your spark.
UFC Face-Off #5: Michael Chandler vs Justin Gaethje at UFC 268 weigh-ins
It’s one of the rare times when a fight goes down as advertised, and this was one of the rare cases. Perhaps the greatest fight in the UFC Lightweight history, a night before they go down together, Gaethje and Chandler chose to stand with just an inch of space between them. The audience could feel the intensity of both the fighters were producing, they could see the reason why the fight needs to happen, and more importantly, since the fight went down as a memorable one in UFC history, this right there exponentially increases the magnitude of this UFC face-off.
UFC Face-Off #4: Anderson Silva vs Vitor Belfort at UFC 125 weigh-ins
Silva was shocked when he realised his former training partner in Vitor Belfort will challenge him for the middleweight title by dropping down a weight class. Belfort expected a friendly face-off at UFC 126 weigh-ins but Silva had other plans. The latter chose to wear a mask and then remove it suddenly depicting Belfort revealing his true intentions.
The next day at fight night, Silva charged Belfort with a raging front kick to the face which resulted in one of the greatest knockouts in UFC history, it was the UFC’s official greatest knockout upon the span of when the company completed its 20 years. This altogether elevates the magnitude of the UFC face-off to another level!
UFC Face-Off #3: Conor McGregor vs Nate Diaz at UFC 196 press-conference
Nate Diaz is a vintage fighter with intentions to show his dominance to the opponents before the fight happens. His classic style of keeping hands raised and forward during press conferences and weigh-ins has messed a lot of minds before the fight night.
At the press conference of UFC 196, Diaz did that again and his opponent Conor McGregor didn’t like it at all. That’s what all was needed to solidify this as one of the most historic rivalries in MMA history. McGregor smacked Diaz hands hardly which led to the sudden hostility and a fight like a scenario then and there. This brought the entire team from Diaz side, including his brother Nick Diaz to jump on the stage.
UFC Face-Off #2: Jon Jones vs Daniel Cormier at UFC 182 press-conference
Jones and Cormier were all cooled down opponents, the heat was as much as regular competitors would have with each other. Until this face-off, after the press conference for UFC 182, former pound for pound king Jon Jones was heading to make his face off before his eighth title defence against number one contender Daniel Cormier.
Jones rather decides to close the distance and let the heads meet to showcase his dominance, Cormier didn’t like the gesture and as a result, pushed Jones as hard as he could. This started a vicious brawl between both the fighters, who fight at light-heavyweight and the banner of UFC 182 in the background collided with their force. It was a mess all over that needed enormous muscle power in order to stop the violent motion. This started Cormier and Jones’ history as part of, claimed by many, the biggest rivalry in UFC history.
UFC Face-Off #1: Khabib Nurmagomedov vs Conor McGregor at UFC 229 weigh-ins
Once good friends, things turned when Khabib took the opportunity at UFC 205 to address what’s wrong with the lightweight division title fight scene, it obviously had to do with Conor McGregor. The 2 collided during the fight week of UFC 223 when McGregor got to know Khabib aggressively confronted his teammate Artem Lobov. In response, flew down from Ireland to Las Vegas, threw a large metal piece over Khabib’s tour bus provided by the UFC which caused a lot of injuries amongst the fighters in there and doubled down the intensity of hate from both sides.
They were finally scheduled to square off each other at UFC 229. At the weigh-ins, McGregor had bad intentions of hitting Khabib even during the weigh-ins. The world was watching and getting the most chills they could’ve ever had. If there’s a competition to the rivalry between Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier, it’s this.
What do you think of these face-offs under the banner of the UFC and who do you get in the top 5 of the most memorable face-offs? An honourable mention, we can think of including BJ Penn vs Nick Diaz face off at UFC 137 weigh-ins.
Also Read: “Four different styles of fighting,” Tyron Woodley reveals his massive plans for 2022
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Abhai Singh Tanwar
(1386 Articles Published)