There are times in the fight business when it is good to have a little animosity between two opponents. When there is belief by the masses that these two men truly have a beef the fight will sell more tickets and pay-per-views. Sometimes this beef is non-existent, but every now and then the hatred is real. When Georges St. Pierre and Nick Diaz enter the octagon on March 16^th there will be true hatred between them. It reminded me of another bitter rival.

In 1975 two men finished an eight year feud with one of the greatest boxing matches all of time. When Muhammad Ali fought Joe Frazier in the final chapter of their trilogy of fights it showcased not only the skill, talent, but most importantly the hatred for one another.

Nick Diaz is the trash talker, GSP is the humble champion. Most people would liken GSP to a robot; he goes out does his job and makes it look easy. Something has happened to GSP leading up to this fight. He has started to trash Diaz, but not about his skills as a fighter but as a person.

Ali-Frazier split their first two meetings, and the buildup to this final fight was of course filled with Ali taunting Frazier. He began to attack Frazier from a personal stand point. Relentlessly calling him a gorilla, Uncle Tom, and countless other names, this was Ali’s style; get into the mind of your opponent. Ali believed if you made your opponent mad before a fight, he would make mistakes during the fight.

GSP in a recent phone press conference to promote UFC 158, he called Diaz an “uneducated fool.” In promotions you will hear Dana White quote GSP as saying Diaz is “the most disrespectful person on the planet” and that he “deserves to be beat down.” Strong words from a man who is not known for talking about his opponents in any other manner but with respect.

Years of trashing one another, Ali-Frazier III culminated into one of the most brutal fights in boxing history. Reporters ringside have written how they saw some of the hardest punches ever landed in a fight. The fight was fierce and frantic. Both fighters were relentless in trying to take one another out. Finally after the 15^th round, Frazier’s corner threw in the towel. Eddie Futch, Frazier’s trainer, did it because he feared for the safety of his fighter. What many do not know is Ali told his corner after the 14th round that he was done and to cut his gloves off, but Futch had already thrown in the towel for Frazier.

There is a lot of hatred for Diaz, but for every hater there is a loyal fan. He does not get the respect he deserves, mainly because of his antics outside of the octagon. Do not underestimate him, he is one of the top Welterweights in the world. When he enters that octagon to face GSP there is one guarantee; you will see a fight. Neither fighter is going to run; if GSP stays true to his word he will force the action.

The hatred between Ali-Frazier never really healed. They became cordial, but the things Ali said about Frazier could never be unsaid. In his autobiography that was released in 1996, Frazier said this of Ali:

“Truth is, I’d like to rumble with that sucker again — beat him up piece by piece and mail him back to Jesus. … Now people ask me if I feel bad for him, now that things aren’t going so well for him. Nope. I don’t. Fact is, I don’t give a damn. They want me to love him, but I’ll open up the graveyard and bury his ass when the Lord chooses to take him.” 

That is true hatred, a hatred that died with Frazier in 2011. Ali may never have truly believed the things he said about Frazier, but he never relayed that to him before he passed away. Ali called himself a friend of Frazier in the end, but we will never know if that was true for both men.

The hatred between GSP-Diaz has been building for years. They were originally slated to fight for the title at UFC 137. The title fight was taken away from Diaz due to a failure to meet press obligations. That was when Diaz started to rub GSP the wrong way. When it was announced that Diaz was pulled and Carlos Condit was going to be his replacement GSP called Condit the “tougher fight.”

Ali-Frazier will always be considered one of the greatest rivals of all time in fight history, not just boxing. The reason being is their hatred was not contrived or fake, it was real. They brought that hatred into the ring, and dished out punishment upon each other that reflected that hatred. There was no love lost between these two men, and there never would be a friendship after they fought. Respect…maybe, friendship….never.

On March 16th we will see MMA’s version of Ali-Frazier. These are two of the very best Welterweights in the world today, and they hate each other. This is not a Chael Sonnen hype train where he tries to make us believe he hates his opponent. This is real. GSP will never invite Diaz up for a hockey game in Canada, and Diaz will never invite GSP to a BBQ in Stockton, California. After seeing what classic fights Ali-Frazier gave us with their hatred for one another, imagine what GSP-Diaz will give us. Can’t wait.

UFC 158 is scheduled for March 16^th at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada featuring UFC Welterweight Championship fight between Georges St. Pierre vs. Nick Diaz.

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