No. 7: Nogueira vs. Couture — UFC 102

When this fight was announced in mid-2009, it just felt right. For years, Randy Couture and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira were two of the best heavyweights in the world, and fans hoped to see them meet. At the time they finally did, Couture was coming off his title loss to Brock Lesnar, while Nogueira had lost the interim belt to Frank Mir.
Finally matched, the bout produced the technical masterpiece that most expected. The fight was filled with twists and turns. Nogueira knocked Couture down in both the first and third and locked in an arm triangle in the second, but Couture always managed to stay in the fight.
The setting was made even more remarkable by the fact that it took place in Couture’s hometown of Portland, as the locals attempted to will Couture back into the match. Time and again, they did, as Couture would never quite fade away.
Some of the match’s best moments took place on the ground as they jockeyed for position, worked to pass guard, set up and defended submissions, and reversed each other. In short, it was exactly what was expected all along, and was considered by many the best match of 2009.
No. 6: Griffin vs. Bonnar — TUF 1 Finale

At this point, there’s little new to add about the importance of the TUF Finale 1 fight between Forrest Griffin and Stephan Bonnar. The UFC’s future on television was uncertain at the time, and the action and drama of the event, which was the first live broadcast Spike had done, sealed the sport’s future.
The fight itself has been debated over time as to its merits as a great. On one hand, it was no technical masterpiece, but on the other, MMA was in a different time, and both of them had basically been part-time fighters until that point.
What the fight did showcase was the will of two men willing to take themselves to the extreme edges. Pushing through exhaustion and running on courage, the two went the distance, competing at a frantic pace. Every time one would score a well-placed strike, it seemed that the other would quickly answer. They could never catch their breath, but neither could the audience.
Over three million people tuned in to watch, seeing Griffin win the TUF title before UFC president Dana White made the surprise of offering Bonnar a contract as well.
No. 5: Liddell vs. Silva — UFC 79

This fight just needed to happen. Chuck Liddell vs. Wanderlei Silva was something fans had been demanding it for years. After all, for a long time, Liddell was the man in the UFC and Silva was ruling PRIDE. Along with that, both were seen as throwback warriors, born fighters with no hesitation of putting themselves in harm’s way. Conventional thinking was that matching them together would result in a classic.
Everyone wanted it to happen. At one point during 2006, the UFC announced that if Silva won an upcoming defense against Renato “Babalu” Sobral, he would fight Silva, who was still in PRIDE. The prospect had fans giddy with anticipation, but it never happened. Even though Liddell won, Silva lost by knockout weeks later, changing the fight’s trajectory.
It was only after Zuffa purchased PRIDE that it came. By 2007, Liddell had lost the belt and dropped two straight. In a moment of synchronicity, it was the same rough stretch suffered Silva, finally making it the right time. The duo met at UFC 79 and offered three rounds of exactly what was expected: thrills, chills and excitement. The old warriors turned back the clock and engaged in several back-and-forth barrages. In the end, Liddell won a decision, but the result was almost secondary to the match itself.
No. 4: Edgar vs. Maynard II — UFC 125

Taken as a series, Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard was MMA’s version of Arturo Gatti vs. Micky Ward, a matchup of two well-matched opponents long on skill and guts.
It was fight two that began the legend. Taking place at UFC 125, an event UFC subtitled “Resolution” to correspond with the Jan. 1, 2011 date, the bout was the exact opposite, only leaving the division in disarray.
The bout itself was an unbelievable testament to Edgar’s heart, playing out like a movie script. For a while, it seemed like it would be a Maynard rout. He knocked Edgar down three times in the first, and on each occasion, looked to be a strike or two from ending. But Edgar wouldn’t stay down.
Then, after that round, which was one of the most one-sided in UFC history, something crazy happened. Edgar recovered. Nearly immediately. It was as if Maynard punched himself out and Edgar got a shot of adrenaline, because Edgar kept coming forward while Maynard became sluggish and slower.
By the time they finished the fifth, Edgar had somehow come all the way back to take the lead in overall strikes landed 97-93, but the first-round 10-8s were too much to overcome. The fight was ruled a draw, and nine months later, the two would finish the trilogy in another heart-pounder which saw Edgar win by fourth-round TKO.
No. 3: Silva vs. Sonnen I — UFC 117

Anderson Silva mostly seemed unbeatable. That we knew from his history, which included wins over strikers, wrestlers, grapplers, every style, really. So when Chael Sonnen started picking a fight with him in 2008, no one gave him much of a chance. Sonnen had failed in title fights in other organizations, but put together a strong UFC run and ripped Silva at every turn.
After beating Yushin Okami and Nate Marquardt back-to-back, there was nothing from stopping Sonnen of the opportunity to fight the man he’d tormented for so long, and they met in Aug. 2010, with Sonnen as a huge underdog.
As is his custom, Sonnen charged out and immediately went for a takedown. He was stopped, but moments later, he surprised Silva with a big right hand, wobbling the champion. Like that, the fight turned. For nearly all of the first four rounds, Sonnen was in complete control, taking the champ down and overwhelming with strikes. By the end of the fourth, Sonnen had out-landed him 278-54 and was ahead by a lopsided margin on the judges’ scorecards, 40-36, 40-35, 40-34.
The fifth round was do-or-die for the champion, but it seemed his chances were dashed when the action again went to the ground with Sonnen on top. But after a quick setup, he trapped Sonnen in a triangle armbar, earning a dramatic submission win. After the fight, the legend of his win grew even greater when it was learned that he’d fought with a broken rib.
No. 2: Henderson vs. Rua — UFC 139

Legendary opponents? Check. High stakes? Check. War for the ages? Check. All of the ingredients for a classic came together in November 2011, in an explosion of violence and heart that thrilled the fight world and led to immediate declarations as the best fight of all time.
When Dan Henderson and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua met at UFC 139, it was Henderson’s return to the UFC after a brief, successful run in Strikeforce, whe he had H-bombed three consecutive opponents, including the great Fedor Emelianenko.
Before the fight, UFC president Dana White said a win was likely to get the victor a title shot. What followed was five rounds of action that had jaws dropping in amazement of the will both combatants displayed. With both throwing steady diets of power punches, it seemed a matter of time before one would go down. As the first rounds continued, it seemed that Henderson would seize control. A massive right hand in the third nearly finished Rua, but “Shogun” withstood the onslaught and survived. Somehow, that seemed to energize him, and he took over. Despite his face being badly bloodied and his eye swelling shut, Rua continued moving forward, throwing kicks and punches, wearing down Henderson. In the fifth, Henderson was exhausted, and Rua took him down. Likely needing a finish to win after Henderson had built up a lead, Rua emptied his arsenal. He took mount twice, landed punch after punch, landing 79 strikes in a frantic attempt to finish. Henderson took everything he could dish out and survived. While most figured the dominant show would give Rua a 10-8 fifth round and force a draw, all of the judges scored it 10-9, giving Henderson a slim win.
Still, the stunning dual display of heart is regarded as peerless in the UFC canon.
No. 1: Jones vs. Gustafsson — UFC 165

Jon Jones may be on the way to authoring the most dominant championship run in UFC history, along with one of the outstanding records the sport has seen. Maybe. In 19 pro fights, Jones had shown almost no real weaknesses or susceptibility to losing. He’d only lost a handful of rounds, he’d never been rocked, never even been taken down.
So when he was matched up against Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 165, he was expected to find the same kind of success. The only question, it seemed, was whether Gustafsson’s similar height and reach would offer any real resistance in the striking department. What a surprise we all were in for, as Gustafsson established early on that he would be no pushover. The biggest shock came early on, when he became the first man to take Jones down, pulling the trick in the first.
Each round from there on was closely contested, with highly technical striking and both men showing excellent conditioning. After three rounds, Jones was down on the scorecards, and Gustafsson seemed on his way to a major upset. But in the fourth, Jones rallied behind the strength of a spinning back elbow that wobbled Gustafsson, and he carried the momentum into the final five minutes, finally scoring his first takedown and emerging with the win.
The decision has been and probably will continue to be questioned, but with both fighters still in their respective primes, an eventual rematch seems a certainty.