UFC fans will always be seeking out contenders who have heated rivalries inside the ring. Why? Well, it just makes it all more exciting. Sure UFC betting is great, and watching the fights is fantastic, but nothing is quite as awesome as watching two rivals
Rivalries just add an extra bit of pizzazz to the competition. It’s like seasoning a good dish. Sure, it’s already pretty amazing, but it just makes it even better when the rivalry is there.
There have been many fantastic rivalries over the years between many fighters, and some fighters have even had more than one rival that they often fight it out against. However, one of the best has to be Lawler and Macdonald.
Let’s take a moment to think about the heated rivalry between these fighters and how UFC fans reacted to this rivalry and the amazing sights that it brought out in the ring.
Table of Contents
One of The Best Fights In UFC History
Out of all the fights in the history of the UFC, fans have spoken up and said that they believe that the best fight in all the UFC’s history was the outstanding welterweight title defense fight between Robbie Lawler and Rory MacDonald back in July 2015 at UFC 189.
This fight was a narrow favorite against Jon Jones (one of the greatest MMA fighters of all time) vs Alexander Gustafsson in UFC 165.
This fight was the Lawler-MacDonald II, and it can be summed up the best by the events which occurred right after the end of the 4th round.
Robbie Lawler had dropped his head and was spewing blood from his mouth, as it covered the canvas. Lawler lifted his head and looked right through the ref, as if the man was translucent and met his gaze with MacDonald. Even though swelling made it almost impossible for MacDonald to see.
Lawler recomposed himself and stepped towards his opponent after the sound of the bell rang, MacDonald standing firmly in his spot, returning his rival’s glare.
It was not easy to steal the attention of the crowds after they had just witnessed a McGregor match but together Lawler and MacDonald absolutely stole the show.
The fight ended in the 5th round, when MacDonald fell to the ground due to strikes. After a short spree of strikes by Lawler, Big John McCarthy (one of the best MMA referees of all time) stepped in and called off the fight.
MacDonald is still, to this very day, dealing with the aftermath of the heavy forceful trauma he received in his face that night, especially the damage that was dealt to his nose.
On the other hand, Lawler has fought only a small amount since. This battle between rivals very clearly took something out of both fighters. However, in spite of this, everyone knows that this was the fight that encapsulated the rivalry between these two.
It’s been 7 years since this fight occurred, but many remember it like it was only yesterday thanks to the sheer brutality of it, as the epitome of their rivalry came to fruition and showed how deep it went in the flesh, and, frankly, without fresh too.
Both men have suffered lasting damage, but fans’ mouths were left agape at the sight of this fight.
What People Remember Of The Fight
What makes a rivalry even more heated is not the fighters’ response to it alone, but instead, it is how we, the fans, respond to it, and even though many years have passed since the fight, fans of these two athletes still remember it so well.
We remember it being one of the best shows of human power ever put inside the Octagon.
We recall how both MacDonald and Lawler put up an incredible fight, with amazing effort and brute toughness that could be what you might call a true barn burner.
The recollection of Lawler prowling and his hardcore power punches to respond to MacDonald’s flurries and head kicks, this fight is deserving of a Fight of the Year honors in our opinion. It was enough to have you biting your nails down to the bone!
In the end though, the absolute skillfulness of this fight, as it always was between these rivals, was about the strikes and the pressure that kept a King with his crown.
The Infamous Match-Up That Taught Us A Lot
We learned a lot about both fighters in this match, we learned their skills, weaknesses, and saw them at every stage of every beating.
However, we learned most about their rivalry. They had many fights before, sure, but none was quite like this one.
This fight was the epitome of their rivalry, and it showed up hot and hard in their kicks and punches.
Ultimately, we learned that this rivalry ran deep.
