Greatest Individual Rivalries in Sports History

Sometimes a great match between two great fighters leads to a great rematch. And every so often there may even be a third fight to settle the score. But three, four, and even five fights weren't enough for LaMotta and Robinson, who met in the ring an incredible six times. Their last bout, deemed the "Valentines Day Massacre", ended by TKO while LaMotta lay bleeding against the ropes. LaMotta proudly proclaimed that he never went down, but nonetheless Robinson scored the victory in the last of an incredible series of bouts

For more than a decade these two dominated mens tennis, with Sampras holding the #1 ranking a record 286 straight weeks and Agassi amassing a 101 week streak. They met 34 times, with Sampras getting the best of Agassi 20-14.
While they are cordial toward one another most of the time, it is clear they are not exactly the best of friends. Things even got edgy during a charity event in 2010, when Agassi and Sampras went back and forth during a doubles match in which they both were mic'd up. Agassi began chiding Sampras about being a bad tipper, something Agassi had written about in his book and Sampras responded by firing a serve directly at Agassi's head.

So far Federer and Nadal have met 28 times, with Nadal holding a 18-10 advantage. For six straight years from 2005 to 2010 they finished 1-2 in the world rankings, the longest streak for any two men in tennis.
They each hold records for consecutive wins on a single surface, Federer on grass and hardcourts and Nadal on clay, and each streak was broken by the other.
While their rivalry is intense and competitive, they each maintain respect for each other and a cordial relationship. The two have collaborated to hold charity tennis matches, including the "Match for Africa" and "Joining Forces for the Benefit of Children,". Nadal and Federer split the two charity matches

Golf's biggest rivalry of the 1960's featured two legends of golf, Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus. The two combined to win 25 majors and packed galleries and generated huge television ratings whenever they competed.

Connors was on top of the tennis world while McEnroe was an up-and-comer when the two met for the first time in 1979. Connors took McEnroe lightly, saying he would be "good practice", but McEnroe pulled off the upset and started a feud that featured classic matches and verbal assaults for the next decade. McEnroe got the best of Connors head to head, winning 20 of 33 head to head matches.