5 UFC rematches that were a carbon copy of the first fight

#4. Ronaldo ‘Jacare’ Souza vs. Chris Camozzi – UFC on Fox 15

Jacare Souza's rematch with Chris Camozzi seemed largely pointless

When the UFC inked former Strikeforce middleweight champion Ronaldo ‘Jacare’ Souza to a contract in 2013, UFC fans were hopeful that the grappling whiz would add an exciting new face to the 185-pound division.

However, they were disappointed when his first opponent, top 10-ranked Costas Philippou, was sidelined prior to their bout and replaced by journeyman Chris Camozzi.

On paper, this seemed like a one-sided fight. In execution, it turned out that way too, as Jacare immediately took Camozzi to the ground and worked him over, submitting him with an arm triangle midway through the first round.

Following the bout, Jacare indeed moved up into title contention, beating the likes of Yushin Okami and Gegard Mousasi. Camozzi, meanwhile, lost his next two UFC bouts and found himself released by the promotion.

The odds on the two men ever rematching seemed hugely slim. Incredibly, two years later, when Yoel Romero pulled out of a title eliminator with Jacare, the only man willing to face the Brazilian, again, was Camozzi.

The TUF 11 veteran had won two fights on the regional circuit, but quite why the UFC couldn’t have found a more suitable opponent for Jacare was anyone’s guess.

Everyone figured the fight would be an easy win for Jacare. Sure enough, in what was basically a carbon copy of the first bout, Souza simply took Camozzi down and arm-barred him, submitting him in a minute less than he’d done two years prior.

While Camozzi did deserve some credit for his willingness to fight Souza, the rematch remains probably the most pointless in the promotion’s history.

---

#3. Chuck Liddell vs. Tito Ortiz – UFC 66

Chuck Liddell used the same gameplan to defeat his rival Tito Ortiz twice

When former UFC light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz finally faced off with his old training partner and former friend Chuck Liddell in April 2004, it was one of the most highly-anticipated bouts in the promotion’s history.

Despite the tales of Liddell dominating Ortiz in their sparring sessions, nobody was really sure whether ‘The Iceman’ really had what it would take to defeat ‘The Huntington Beach Bad Boy’. In fact, a great number of fans figured Ortiz would simply take Liddell down and smash him as he’d done to opponents like Ken Shamrock and Elvis Sinosic.

However, he was never able to come close. Liddell’s footwork allowed him to stay out of range of Ortiz’s takedowns. After goading the former champion into a brawl, ‘The Iceman’ simply outgunned him and finished him off with a vicious combination that left him in a bloody heap.

Two and a half years later, Liddell held the UFC light heavyweight title, while Ortiz had worked his way back up the ladder thanks to wins over Vitor Belfort and Forrest Griffin. With the two men standing as the promotion’s biggest stars, a rematch made all the sense in the world.

Despite that, it was hard to imagine that Ortiz could find a way to make the correct adjustments he needed to defeat Liddell. Sure enough, those doubters were proven right.

Just as in the first fight, Ortiz was largely unable to impose his will on Liddell. Even when he did land a takedown, ‘The Iceman’ simply powered his way back up to his feet.

Standing, meanwhile, Liddell was again able to bait Ortiz into a shootout that he just couldn’t win. The fight went to the third round rather than the second, but still ended in a carbon copy of their previous bout, with Liddell raining blows onto ‘The Huntington Beach Bad Boy’ until the referee was forced to step in.

Far from being pointless, though, despite this rematch ending in the same way as the initial fight, the event it headlined drew a record buy-rate on pay-per-view that stood for nearly three years.