{"id":448538,"date":"2026-01-31T01:24:09","date_gmt":"2026-01-31T01:24:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/448538\/"},"modified":"2026-01-31T01:24:09","modified_gmt":"2026-01-31T01:24:09","slug":"re-visiting-the-greatest-rematches-in-ufc-history-ahead-of-alex-volkanovski-vs-diego-lopes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/448538\/","title":{"rendered":"Re-visiting the greatest rematches in UFC history ahead of Alex Volkanovski vs Diego Lopes"},"content":{"rendered":"

This Sunday at UFC 325, Alex \u201cThe Great\u201d Volkanovski<\/a> steps back into the Octagon for a rematch with Diego Lopes, revisiting last year\u2019s title clash at UFC 314.<\/p>\n

Volk came out on top in the first fight with a commanding decision, though he survived a scare in round two when Lopes dropped him with a heavy shot.<\/p>\n

UFC 325: Volkanovski vs Lopes 2 | SUN 1 FEB 1PM AEDT | For the first time in his storied career, UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski will defend his championship in his home city of Sydney, in a rematch with Brazil\u2019s Diego Lopes. | Order Now with Main Event on Kayo Sports.<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Lopes has told Fox Sports Australia he\u2019s learned from the loss and will be coming in sharper, tougher, and hungrier than ever.<\/p>\n

For the 37-year-old Wollongong champ, it\u2019s about upping his game and reminding everyone exactly who runs the featherweight division.<\/p>\n

Ahead of fight night, we run through six of the greatest UFC rematches of all time – epic stouches defined by skill, surprises, and redemption – and concrete proof that sometimes the sequel is better than the original.<\/p>\n

Jose Aldo vs Chad Mendes, (2014)<\/p>\n

Aldo fought 42 pro MMA bouts, but few matched the fire of his five-round war with Chad Mendes at UFC 179 in Brazil.<\/p>\n

A rematch two years after Aldo knocked Mendes out in round one, it had everything – blood, grit, and nonstop action from start to finish.<\/p>\n

Mendes came to win, even managing to knockdown Aldo early, but couldn\u2019t do much beyond a single takedown. On the feet it was close, but Aldo outstruck Mendes and eventually got his hand raised in front of the Rio crowd.<\/p>\n

This marked Aldo\u2019s seventh successful UFC title defence, and his ninth in a row if you include his WEC championship reign.<\/p>\n

UFC president Dana White called the match \u201cthe greatest featherweight fight\u201d he\u2019d ever seen.<\/p>\n

Daniel Cormier vs Stipe Miocic, (2019)<\/p>\n

The heavyweight division\u2019s stakes couldn\u2019t have been higher at UFC 241, where former champ Stipe Miocic squared off with Daniel Cormier for a rematch of their epic 2018 showdown. <\/p>\n

Their first fight saw Cormier claim the title in a fourth-round knockout (and become a double champ), ending Miocic\u2019s then-record streak of successful heavyweight defences.<\/p>\n

After weathering a brutal storm for the opening rounds, Miocic stormed back into the fight late with punishing body shots to earn an incredible fourth-round KO. This fight exceeded every expectation.<\/p>\n

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – AUGUST 15: In this handout image provided by UFC, Stipe Miocic (R) punches Daniel Cormier in their UFC heavyweight championship bout during the UFC 252 event at UFC APEX on August 15, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari\/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n

Rob Whittaker vs Yoel Romero (2018)<\/p>\n

The rematch between Rob Whittaker and Yoel Romero at UFC 225 was pure fireworks from start to finish and one of the greatest all-time UFC showdowns.<\/p>\n

The two first clashed for the interim title in July 2017 at UFC 213, with Whittaker walking away with a unanimous decision \u2013 and a serious knee injury.<\/p>\n

Whittaker dominated the first two rounds of the rematch, before being dropped by Romero in the third, leading to two and half of the most incredible rounds you\u2019re ever likely to see.<\/p>\n

There were monster punches, thunderous head kicks and everything in between, as Romero and Whittaker went blow-for-blow.<\/p>\n

Eventually, the Aussie got his hand raised to pull off a stunning win, taking the bout via split decision.<\/p>\n

DAILY TELEGRAPH – UFC 225 in Chicago, USA. Rob Whittaker (black shorts) beats Yoel Romero over a 5 round war. Pic, Sam RuttynSource: News Corp Australia<\/p>\n

Frankie Edgar vs Gray Maynard (2011)<\/p>\n

On January 1, 2011, lightweight champ Frankie Edgar put his title on the line against the one man who had handed him a loss \u2013 Gray Maynard.<\/p>\n

Their rematch went on to become The Fight of the Year, with Maynard sensationally dropping Edgar repeatedly in the first round.<\/p>\n

Edgar, on rubber legs, refused to give up and fought his way back into the fight in a real-life Rocky performance.<\/p>\n

The fight was eventually ruled a split draw, allowing Edgar to retain the lightweight title and set up their eventual trilogy.<\/p>\n

Their third fight saw Edgar recover from early punishment to KO Maynard in the fourth round.<\/p>\n

Conor McGregor vs Nate Diaz 2 (2016)<\/p>\n

The rematch between Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz at UFC 202 was everything a sequel is supposed to be \u2013 and then some. <\/p>\n

Their first meeting stunned the MMA world when Diaz submitted McGregor, and the rematch came with huge pressure on the Irish superstar to prove the upset wasn\u2019t the beginning of a downfall.<\/p>\n

McGregor came in smarter the second time around, ditching the all-out blitz for patience. He mixed in leg kicks, picked his shots and managed the pace early, knowing he couldn\u2019t afford to gas-out.<\/p>\n

He knocked down Diaz three times, but couldn\u2019t put him away. Diaz, as always, soaked it up, talked plenty of trash and kept marching forward, trying to turn the bout into a streetfight.<\/p>\n

Momentum swung hard in this fight with Diaz surging late, and McGregor digging deep when he needed to. When it was over, McGregor took a tight majority decision. <\/p>\n

LAS VEGAS, NV – AUGUST 20: Conor McGregor (R) punches Nate Diaz during their welterweight rematch at the UFC 202 event at T-Mobile Arena on August 20, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Steve Marcus\/Getty Images\/AFPSource: AFP<\/p>\n

Robbie Lawler vs Rory McDonald 2, (2015)<\/p>\n

Not only is this one of the greatest rematches of all time, many consider it the greatest fight of all time. <\/p>\n

Lawler had long been a fan favourite for his all-action style, and Rory MacDonald proved the perfect opponent.<\/p>\n

The two first clashed in 2013, with Lawler edging a split-decision win in a solid scrap. Less than two years later, with Lawler now the welterweight champ, they clashed again in a brutal, blood-soaked battle.<\/p>\n

By the fifth round of this fight, it was just about survival. Lawler found another gear and somehow walked out still champion. It wasn\u2019t pretty, it wasn\u2019t technical perfection – it was incredible.<\/p>\n

Volk: “I cannot wait to put on a show!” | 02:45<\/p>\n

Despite not winning, McDonald described the fight as \u201cthe greatest moment of my life\u201d saying the fight \u201cshowed me who I was\u201d.<\/p>\n

Dana White described it as \u201can absolute war\u201d.<\/p>\n

The fight was inducted into the UFC\u2019s Hall of Fame in 2023.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"This Sunday at UFC 325, Alex \u201cThe Great\u201d Volkanovski steps back into the Octagon for a rematch with…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":448539,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[43,44,85,41,39,42,40],"class_list":{"0":"post-448538","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-headlines","8":"tag-headlines","9":"tag-news","10":"tag-sports","11":"tag-top-news","12":"tag-top-stories","13":"tag-topnews","14":"tag-topstories"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/448538","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=448538"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/448538\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/448539"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=448538"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=448538"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=448538"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}