In combat sports, it takes a great rival makes a truly great champion. Without Joe Frazier, Muhammad Ali would not be Muhammad Ali. No Sugar Ray Robinson, no Jake LaMotta. No Micky Ward, no Arturo Gatti. You can go on forever.

UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor and hardcore fanbase hero Nate Diaz have a rivalry that is bringing out the best of each, and compensating them accordingly.

When the two fought for the first time at UFC 196, it was the biggest mixed martial arts pay per view of all time, with an estimated 1,900,000 buys, breaking the record set at UFC 100 on July 11, 2009. Diaz won that the first fight.

McGregor came back to narrowly win the second fight at UFC 202, and it too was one of the biggest PPVs of all time. There will be a trilogy fight.

The fights were built with brilliant trash talk, tremendous action, and the extraordinary personalities of the two fighters.

Conor McGregor’s great coach, SBG Ireland founder John Kavanagh, appeared recently on Ariel Helwani’s The MMA Hour, and related an incident mid fight that was pure Diaz.

There was a funny part from the fight,” said the coach. “I don’t know whether it was picked up or not. But they were in our corner, and Conor had thrown a turning side kick, which wasn’t a part of the gameplan, at all. And I kind of shouted at Conor, and he was right beside me. And I was like, ‘Gameplan! Gameplan! Stick to the gameplan! Discipline!’ And in like the midst of all that madness, Nate like kind of looks down at me and goes, ‘F U and your gameplan!’

It was just … it was a crazy moment, said Kavanagh, laughing appreciatively.

(3:09:17 mark)

H/T BJPenn.com