The Biggest Sports Brawls We’ve Ever Seen

Sports is supposed to be a competitive event but to some, it can be more than just that. A hard foul can trigger an NBA fight while a wild pitch in the Major League can lead to unfortunate things.

Here are the Biggest brawls in the history of sports:

The Philippines vs Australia Brawl (2018)

During one of the games for the FIBA World Cup qualifiers, a brawl between the Philippine National Team and the Australian Boomers in July 2018 in Manila. The bad blood began when it was caught on Philippine TV that the Aussies removed a sponsor in the venue. Likewise, during the warmups, Filipino Calvin Abueva tried to trip Aussie Daniel Kickert. Nothing serious happened until the third quarter when Filipino Roger Pogoy gave up a hard foul on Chris Goulding when Goulding’s teammate Kickert retaliated. After the melee was cleared, the Philippine team even took a group selfie as if they had won.

Detroit Pistons vs. Indiana Pacers  (2004)

It all began from an overreaction from Ben Wallace after what was barely a foul from Ron Artest. Wallace then shoved Artest and the man now known as Metta World Peace did what we are all supposed to do: walk away. But Stephen Jackson entered the scene, looking for a fistfight among any of the Detroit Pistons player. The out of nowhere, a fan threw a beer cup at Artest and he suddenly flips and goes over to the stands. Fans started fighting players, players were also fighting players. And the rest is now what is called the “Malice in the Palace”, the worst brawl in NBA history and arguably the worst brawl in all of the sports.

FIU Panthers vs Miami Hurricanes  (2006)

The campuses of the University of Miami and Florida International University are less than 10 miles apart and many of the players of both schools come from the South Florida metropolitan area. This is what usually happens when a group of kids who grew up together ended up as rivals playing college football in two different schools. So when this Marshall McDuffie of FIU kicks Miami holder Matt Perelli in the head when he’s already on the ground, all hell breaks loose. Miami won the game 35-0 but this was more than that.

Peoria Chiefs vs Dayton Dragons (2008)

Minor League baseball rarely hits the news, especially Sportscenter unless of course Michael Jordan was in Triple-A or something like that. But this one did, minus MJ. It all began when the opposing managers meet face to face in an argument. Then suddenly Peoria pitcher Julio Castillo throws a pitch to the opposing dugout. The throw hit a fan who was taken to the hospital but before that happened, the entire Dayton bench went nuts after Castillo and it was mayhem from there. Watch this:

St. Louis Blues vs Chicago Blackhawks (1991)

Known as the “St. Patrick’s Day Massacre”, this NHL game was the worst of the rivalry between the St. Louis Blues and Chicago Blackhawks. There were several fights on the ice but the one between Dave Manson and Scott Stevens stood out because these two fighters or I mean, hockey players continued to throw blows even while they were already down on the ice. In all, 12 people were ejected from the game and each team was fined $10,000 each. Watch this:

Chicago White Sox vs Texas Rangers (1993)

This one’s a favorite because I watched this life on TV and I was pumped up more than shocked. Nolan Ryan is a Hall of Fame pitcher but he isn’t just good in throwing his stuff, Ryan has a good grappling game. In this incident, Ryan hit then 26-year-old Robin Ventura with a wild pitch. Ventura charges to him at the mound but Ryan caught Ventura in a headlock and proceeded with landing rabbit punches on the White Sox player. But Ventura fought back and was able to pin Ryan down. Now, who won that fight?

Denver Nuggets at New York Knicks (2006)

When you have a 19-point lead with one minute and 15 seconds left to play in an NBA game, everything is already settled except the final score so every play is just a “let go”, right? Don’t tell that to Mardy Collins whose flagrant foul on JR Smith started a brawl that escalated quickly. Just as the initial fight was about to end, Carmelo Anthony had other plans and landed a sucker punch.  When all was said and done, seven players were suspended for a total of 47 games.

Boston Red Sox vs New York Yankees (2004)

The Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees are a known rivalry in Major League Baseball. But mostly, the rivalry has happened inside the diamond, not outside it. Well, tell that to Alex Rodriguez. After A-Rod was hit by a pitch from Bronson Arroyo, the Yankees’ shortstop had some “sweet words” to say to Arroyo. Red Sox catcher Jason Varitek didn’t like the verbal abuse and steps in. When Rodriguez says “Come at me”, Varitek obliges by putting his catcher’s mitt on A-Rod. Both benches clear and we have one of the biggest brawls in all of sports.

Houston Rockets vs Los Angeles Lakers (1976)

Known as the “Punch”, former Houston Rockets’ championship coach Rudy Tomjanovich was at the wrong place at the wrong time. As the captain of the NBA’s Houston Rockets, he was just trying to run to the scene of a brawl when he was met by a punch from Kermit Washington. Bang! Tomjanovic got his square on the face and he missed five months of action and was never the same player again.

Clint Bowyer vs Jeff Gordon (2012)

You read it correctly. These two are NASCAR drivers but that doesn’t mean that they don’t know how to fight. After being put in the wall by Jeff Gordon late in the race, Clint Bowyer took exception and ran after Gordon. No, there were 2 no actual punches landed here and it caused a commotion