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#4. Rose Namajunas and Joanna Jędrzejczyk bury the hatchet after a 5-round MMA war
The two-fight MMA rivalry between 'Thug' Rose Namajunas and Joanna Jędrzejczyk spun a classic tale of good-versus-evil. The drama was carried mostly by Jędrzejczyk, who talked all kinds of mad trash to the otherwise stoic and restrained Namajunas. During their intense UFC 217 weigh-in, the Polish then-champion went full villain while the American challenger said the Lord's prayer. It's a tale as old as time.
If the build-up to the first fight was like a movie, then the fight itself was the dramatic climax. Namajunas knocked out the trash-talking MMA champion with a stepping left hook to win the UFC strawweight crown.
The build-up to the rematch at UFC 223, however, was quite different. Jędrzejczyk, seemingly humbled by her first loss, focused more on rising above adversity. Still, she insisted that Namajunas' win was a fluke. 'Thug' Rose, on her end, was quite the same as the first MMA clash; calm and respectful.
The rematch went down the wire as the two slugged it out in a closely contested classic. Namajunas edged out a decision win after 5 rounds of a grueling back-and-forth slugfest. After the final horn sounds, the two had a beautiful moment of respect and sportsmanship as they embraced and walked the cage in each other's arms. Win or lose, both knew they achieved something that will be remembered in history forever.
#3. Kamaru Usman and Colby Covington share a rare moment of respect
The most recent entry on this list, the rivalry between UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman and Colby Covington is still fresh in everyone's minds. The clashes with Covington were similar to Usman's high-profile matches with Jorge 'Gamebred' Masvidal. The only difference is that while the Masvidal fights were one-sided beatdowns, the Usman-Covington fights were extremely competitive and razor-close. The trash-talk was at a level above usual as the divisive Covington spent as much time as he had on the mic to berate his bitter rival.
The first fight was a hotly contested bout with the champion edging out his challenger with a come-from-behind TKO victory. A rematch was set to take place after Covington bounced back with a win over former champion Tyron Woodley.
With the hype behind the rematch reaching lofty heights, the fight absolutely delivered. Covington was knocked down badly in the second round but survived to bring himself back into the fight as the duo battled it out for five rounds in the main event of UFC 268 with Usman emerging victorious.
The end of the fight showed a rather human side to Covington as he seemingly let go of his heel character to shake Usman's hand. The two shared so many kind words that MMA referee Dan Miragliotta had to jokingly separate them and say "you can kiss later". Hear it from the champion himself in this post-fight interview:
