Best Individual Rivalries

[Big Sexy]

I was reading an article on ESPN about Kobe Bryant and the fact that he has never really had a consistent individual rival throughout his career. The closest was probably Shaq and even that only lasted a couple years. It got me to thinking about what are the best individual rivalries the sports world has ever seen and what are some of the current best rivalries. I also want to discuss whether or not you think more individual rivalries are needed and why they don't exist as much in today's sports world.

I won't go into too much detail right now in the opening post but it's obvious to me that the best all time individual rivalry was Larry Bird vs Magic Johnson. Magic and the Lakers won 5 titles in the 80's and represented the West in the finals 8 times (Houston made it the other 2 times). Bird and the Celtics won 3 titles and represented the East 5 times in the finals (Philly was there 3 times and Detroit 2). Magic and Bird were the best overall players on their respective teams and their rivalry along with the arrival of Michael Jordan helped boost the popularity of the NBA dramatically.

As for current rivalries it gets tougher. Crosby/Ovechkin was big for a while but now with Crosby out that has dwindled. Brady/Peyton Manning was huge but the injury to Manning has put a damper on that. Even Nadal/Federer is basically done. The best current individual rivalry is probably Mayweather/Pacquiao and they have never even fought.

I think sports could use more of these individual rivalries because it brings more out of the sports experience. The players in the rivalry seem to step their games up when facing off, the fans get into everything more, and it adds more to the overall entertainment. I think the reason these rivalries don't exist as much is because of all the player movement from team to team. It seems that nowadays players are friends with everyone in their respective leagues. They have either played together or have mutual friends/teammates and it takes away from the intensity of potential rivalries. You also have the fact that the teams these guys play for often plays a big part in the rivalry. If Larry Bird had left to go to the Milwaukee Bucks as a free agent midway through the 80's then that definitely would have taken away from the Bird/Magic rivalry. So I ask you:

What is the best ever individual sports rivalry?

What is the best current individual sports rivalry?

Do you think more individual rivalries are good for sports?

Why is the number of individual rivalries dwindling?

 

[Alastor]

What is the best ever individual sports rivalry?
Federer/Nadal. When the potential 2 best players to ever play the sports are competing with each other near the peak of their career it was great to watch. Both men rewrote history, and both needed to overcome the other to do so at one point or another. Granted Nadal was only starting out when Federer was at his best while Nadal probably was at his best when Federer's age was catching up to him.

What is the best current individual sports rivalry?
Nadal and Novak could be a good rivalry if Nadal stays fit. Lebron and Rose has potential as their teams are set to be the dominant force of the east for at least a few seasons. But Messi and C.Ronaldo to me is the best rivalry at the moment even though Messi is winning all the plaudits. These two has been putting up playstation statistics for years and both have won titles. This season might finally see Ronaldo beat Messi to the league title. A different narrative can be added to the rivalry now that Ronaldo finally won a 'major' title competing directly with Messi's team.

Do you think more individual rivalries are good for sports?
Yes. More things for fans to talk about, speculate about and debate about.

Why is the number of individual rivalries dwindling?
I don't think it is dwindling. I think rivalries are viewed more in terms of 'how much I can accomplish/win' nowadays than 'I want to beat the rival down to a pulp' these days. The ego will always be there to want to be the best but athletes these days have even more PR personnels to tone down anything nasty being said. Rivalries might seen as being less intense than earlier generations as a result.

Another reason could be the higher turnover rate of players in pro sports these days. Potential individual rivalry could be nicked in bud when a super rich team sign up both great players. A great player could move out of the same conference/league as his rival and the rivalry will fee 'incomplete'. Bird/Magic do not really count as their teams met often in the finals to solidify the rivalry in people's minds.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

I think one of the greatest sporting rivalries in history is one that is currently on-going, and due to the ages of the athletes involved, could run for years.

That rivalry is between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

There is literally no other player in the world who can touch either of these two men. Not only do they play for clubs who have one of the fiercest rivalries in sport (Ronaldo at Real Madrid and Messi at Barcelona), but the 2 players are far and away the best in the world.

They are both consistently scoring 40-50 goals a season in one of Europe's top leagues, which is an astounding achievement- Ronaldo ended the last season with more than a goal a game, and barely a week goes by without one of the other scoring a hat-trick, a wonder goal or single-handedly dragging their team to success. Barcelona have dominated Spanish football for the last few years, but this season a Ronaldo-inspired Madrid are 10 points clear in La Liga, and look set to win the title.

Messi is still in his early 20s, Ronaldo his mid-20s, and neither look like they are going to lose form anytime soon. Cases are already being made for these 2 to go down as 2 of the best of all time, and I think they eventually will.

The good thing about this rivalry, is that while Barca and Real HATE each other, and there is always alot of controversy each time the teams meet in "El Classico", oftern started by Real manager Jose Mourinho, the rivalry between Messi and Ronaldo is one of respect, as both players have publically stated their admiration and respect for the other. There is no-one who has challenged either for European football's golden boot in recent years, and once again this year it looks set to be a one-on-one fight between Messi and Ronaldo to be the best.

I personally prefer Lionel Messi, he is absolutely phenomenal and is already one of the all-time top scorers for Barcelona even at age 23, but Ronaldo is not far behind. Seeing him develop from a skinny winger into a muscle-bound goal machine has been incredible.

I look forward to hopefully many more years of Lionel Messi v Cristiano Ronaldo.