Top Five Sports Brawls

Acknowledging the inevitable recent history bias, this list is limited to the period between 1990 and the present.

1. Red Sox- Yankees, October 2003
With the series tied 1-1, Pedro Martinez plunked Yankees outfielder Karim Garcia in the back with a fastball. Words were exchanged and threats were made. The next inning, Manny Ramirez took an exception to a high fastball by Roger Clemens and proceeded to charge the mound. The benches emptied and an all-out brawl ensured. The defining moment was when Pedro Martinez taunted 72-year-old Yankees bench coach Don Zimmer. Zimmer took a swing at Martinez, who grabbed him by the head and tossed him to the ground. As a postscript, Garcia and Jeff Nelson got into a fight with a Fenway Park groundskeeper in the bullpen during the ninth inning.

2. Pacers-Pistons, November 2004
So this brawl might make the list if it were limited to the events that took place on the court. With the game in hand, Ron Artest made a hard foul on Ben Wallace, who pushed Artest in retaliation. An all-out altercation ensued and Artest escaped, climbing onto the scorer's table and lying down. One of the disgusted fans threw a cup at Artest, who snapped, climbing into the stands to slug the fan who he mistakenly thought had thrown the cup. Other Pacers followed him into the seats. Another fan charged the court to confront Jermaine O'Neal and was met with a point-blank forearm shot to his face.

3. Miami-Florida International, October 2006
First of all, FIU has no business picking a fight with Miami. But Miami, knowing it's the superior team, needs to just shut up and rise above the nonsense. Scoring a touchdown against FIU is no reason to go preening in the end zone. The FIU players evidently took exception, charging the holder after the ensuing PAT. A melee broke out, punctuated by Anthony Reddick swinging his helmet while rushing toward the fray. Players were stomped on while lying on the ground and crutches were also used as a weapon. This brawl might be remembered for Miami's rather gutless response: suspending 12 players for a single game, against ACC doormat Duke. Enlightening commentary (by which I mean classless trash talking) was provided by sportscaster and former Hurricane Lamar Thomas.

4. Holyfield-Bowe (Fan Man), November 1993
During the seventh round of the heavyweight title fight between Riddick Bowe and Evander Holyfield, a paraglider wearing a fan on his back coasted into the outdoor ring at Caesars Palace. One of his legs became trapped in the ropes. For reasons I have yet to understand, members of both boxers' camps as well as spectators sitting ringside believed that Fan Man's grand entrance gave them full liberty to rush the ring and beat the living daylights out of him. A distracted Bowe went on to lose the heavyweight championship.

5. Knicks-Heat, May 1997 and April 1998
In Game 5 of the second round of the playoffs, P.J. Brown became upset at Charlie Ward's attempt to box him out while chasing a rebound. Brown responded by flipping Ward over his head and body-slamming him. A melee broke out with numerous Knicks players leaving the bench and receiving one-game suspensions. The suspensions caused the Knicks to play shorthanded for the last two games of the playoff series, both of which they lost, leading to their elimination. When the teams met again in the following year's postseason, Alonzo Mourning and Larry Johnson got into a fight that diminuitive coach Jeff Van Gundy tried to break up by grabbing onto Mourning's leg and being dragged across the court.