10 of the Greatest Individual Rivalries in Sports History

Ayrton Senna - Alain Prost

A rivalry that could be Formula One’s greatest ever, the competition between four-time World Champion Alain Prost (L) and three-time winner Ayrton Senna peaked between 1988 and 1991, when both raced for the McLaren team. They took pot shots at each other in press conferences, the most famous being the Brazilian’s rant at the Frenchman in 1993, when he called Prost a coward.

The competition between the two was restricted to the track however, and Prost was a pall-bearer at Senna’s funeral following his death in 1994.

Mohammed Ali - Joe Frazier

Ali-Frazier is synonymous with boxing rivalries. They met three times, the first two going the 15-round distance in brutal fashion while the third was only stopped after Frazier's corner would not let him go out for the final round. Frazier's victory in the first bout was Ali's first career loss, one Ali would avenge in the second fight.

The third fight, the "Thrilla in Manila", was one of those rare fights that actually exceeded the hype and gave Ali the victory in the rubber match between these two legends.

Michael Schumacher - Mika Hakkinen

Every Formula One fan would say Mika Hakkinen and Michael Schumacher when you ask for a top rivalry pair. Their rivalry was more or less a fair contest amongst passionate drivers stretching back to 1990 Macau Grand Prix F3 racing, where Schumacher won the race after colliding with his counterpart thereby ending his race. The heat carried forward to F1 as well, for three seasons from 1998 to 2000 the German and Finn fought head to head peerlessly.

Their rivalry reached the peak at Spa circuit during 2000 Belgian Grand Prix when Hakkinen went on to win the race from pole after an off control spin off the track. Schumacher finished at 2nd place 1.1 seconds behind him, after being overtaken by Hakkinen at the 40th lap after a minor accident which damaged Finn’s front wing. Though Hakkinen started to fade away after his consecutive championship titles in 1998 and 1999, Schumacher considered him to be the greatest rival of his entire career.

Roger Federer - Rafael Nadal

Federer and Nadal played their first match in March 2004 at the third round of the Miami Masters.Nadal, only 17 years old and ranked No. 34 at the time, surprised many by beating the then No. 1 in straight sets.

I was followed many heated head to head matches, and 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

Lionel Messi - Cristiano Ronaldo

Easily two of the greatest footballers of all times, Ronaldo and Messi have been dominating football over a decade. The Messi–Ronaldo rivalry is a football rivalry between fans of Argentinian forward Lionel Messi and Portuguese forward Cristiano Ronaldo and supposedly between the athletes themselves. 

This rivalry is different than others because not only these two compete on the pitch there is a massive off the field stuff going on about marketing value, financial deals and what not. Both of these burst on to world stage at around about same time when social media was starting shape up new era of sports. Every year when google release most searched keywords in different categories. Ronaldo and Messi usually top the charts for most searched athletes in the world and its been going on for a decade now.

Magic Johnson - Larry Bird

Larry and Magic ended up becoming the best of friends and even wrote a book about it. It wasn’t always that way though. Their rivalry started back in college when Bird played for Indiana State and Johnson played for Michigan State. Johnson’s Spartans beat Bird and Indiana State in the National Championship game in 1979. Today that game still stands as the highest-rated championship game in NCAA history.

Bird hated Magic for destroying his magical season and wanted to get revenge for it. In the NBA, he had the opportunity to do just that. These two met countless times in their career during the regular season. Magic won five championships; Bird only three. Bird won one title over Magic Johnson and the Lakers in 1984, but lost in their two other meetings in the NBA Finals.

Bird and Magic grew to like each other over time, though. Their respect turned into a friendship because of the similarities that the two shared. The NBA may never again see a more pure, respectful rivalry than Magic and Bird.

Pelé - Diego Maradona

Pelé and Maradona never faced each other, but the rivalry between them is considered to many the greatest in the history of Football. Both of them are regarded as the best players of all time and many consider that no other players in history have reached their heights.

This rivalry was intensified with the already existing Argentina–Brazil rivalry. With Brazilians and their fans all over the world taking the side of Pelé, and the Argentinians the side of Maradona. The debate between the pair has been described as "the rivalry of their countries in microcosm".

Famous players and football figures often give their opinion on the Maradona and Pelé rivalry, sometimes choosing one over the other. Others prefer not to compare them, as they played in very different times.

Chris Evert - Martina Navratilova

In a 16-year span from 1973 through 1988, Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova played each other 80 times, with Navratilova holding a slim 43-37 lead. That's nearly twice as many meetings as the second-most-played rivalry in women's tennis (Navratilova vs. Pam Shriver, 43 matches).

It wasn't just the number of meetings that made the rivalry distinctive, though.

Evert was the stoic "Ice Maiden," whose errorless, accurate ground strokes made her virtually unbeatable until Navratilova came along.  Evert's personality and consistent backcourt game were countered perfectly by the emotional, powerful Navratilova, whose aggressive serve-and-volley game dominated women's tennis for a decade.

It was all bracketed by a close friendship they developed during their playing days that continues today.

José Mourinho - Pep Guardiola

Friends who became foes, Mourinho and Guardiola represent opposite ends of football's ideological spectrum and their ongoing grudge match has shaped the game's recent history.

It all began when Guardiola's Barcelona clashed with Mourinho's Inter Milan in 2010. After the win in Camp Nou, the Portuguese ran onto the playing surface with his arm in the air and was held back by Barca goalkeeper Victor Valdes, while someone turned the sprinklers on. It all turned a bit bitter and was a sign of things to come over the next two seasons.

Mourniho became the coach of Real Madrid, the arch-rival of Barcelona. What followed was a period of incredibly intense Clasico clashes between Barca and Real, including four in the space of 18 days at one point: games that were almost violent at times as Madrid made it extremely physical.

Over the years, the duo developed an infamous rivalry, not only with head to head matches, but also with war of words. The two met again on English soil, with Guardiola in charge of Manchester City and Mourinho of Manchester United.

John McEnroe - Bjorn Borg

One of the most fascinating head-to-head battles ever witnessed, both men were polar opposites in every sense of the term. In McEnroe lay a serve-and-volley specialist, known for his fiery temperament and adrenaline-fuelled athleticism on the court. On the other side, Borg, a baseline player, was as cool, calm and calculated a customer you could find.

The duo met 14 times, recording exactly seven victories apiece. However, their grand-slam appearances will live long in the memory. Borg defied the odds, recovering from an exhausting 18-16 tiebreak loss in the fourth set to claim his fifth straight Wimbledon title in 1980. However, McEnroe would go on to win the next three, eventually leading Borg to announce a shock retirement at the age of 26.