American Football
- Joe Namath's famed guarantee of a Super Bowl victory by the 1968 New York Jets was seen as this, as the AFL to which the Jets belonged was perceived as an inferior league to the NFL. The first two Super Bowls had been decisive victories for the NFL champion Green Bay Packers which led to the notion that the AFL was inferior to the NFL; by following through with that guarantee as 18-point underdogs (making it the largest upset in Super Bowl history), the Jets created the Super Bowl (which to that point had been something more akin to an All-Star game, with the NFL Championship considered to be the true Championship game), and helped dispel the notion of a talent disparity between the two leagues and made the impending merger more palatable to long-time football fans.
- The controversial post-game speech by Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman after the team's victory over the 49ers in the 2014 NFC Championship game."I’m the best corner in the game. When you try me with a sorry receiver like Crabtree, that’s the result you gonna get. Don’t you ever talk about me. Don’t you open your mouth about the best or I’m gonna shut it for you real quick."
- Speaking of Seattle, the Seahawks had a somewhat embarrassing Badass Boast Backfire in their 2003 playoff game against the Green Bay Packers. The regulation period ended in a tie, so the game went to overtime, and after winning the OT coin toss, then-Seahawks QB Matt Hasselback famously told the official (and, inadvertently, everyone watching the game) that Seattle was "gonna score". Well, Hasselback did throw the pass that led to the winning touchdown
... but unfortunately for the Seahawks, it was an interception. - The Minnesota Vikings' defensive line of the 1960s and 70s (the "Purple People Eaters," though they preferred to call themselves the "Purple Gang"), anchored by Hall of Famer ''and future Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court'' Alan Page, fellow Hall of Famer Carl Eller, and two-time Pro Bowlers Jim Marshall and Gary Larson, had one that doubled as a Badass Creed:"Meet at the Quarterback."
- In a regular season game between the New England Patriots and The Carolina Panthers in 2013, Panthers receiver Steve Smith and Pats CB Aqib Talib got into a bit of a scuffle, both men known for getting a little emotional during games, including a brawl between the two. Talib eventually left the game in the 4th quarter after suffering a hip injury, ending with the Panthers winning 24-20. After the game, a reporter interviewed Smith, asking about Talib's effect on him during the game."I don't know, you're gonna have to ask him cause he didn't finish the game! Ice up, son! Ice up!"
Association Football
- At his first press conference after being appointed Chelsea manager in 2004, José Mourinho declared: "Please don't call me arrogant, but I'm European championnote and I think I'm a special one." Mourinho's Chelsea proceeded to curb-stomp their way to the title, shattering a number of records along the way, then won it again the following season. British media swiftly dubbed Mourinho "The Special One".
Baseball
- Boston Red Sox DH David Ortiz is quite good at these, but none may be more memorable than the one he gave at the first game back at Fenway Park after the Boston Marathon bombings."This is our fucking city. And nobody's gonna dictate our freedom. Stay strong."
- That afternoon, Ortiz — in his first game appearance of 2013 — drove in the tying run that would prove crucial in the Red Sox' 4-3 win over the Kansas City Royals.
- Tom Glavine, starting pitcher for the Atlanta Braves, 1995 World Series, Game 6:“Just get me one.”
- Kirby Puckett, center fielder for the Minnesota Twins, 1991 World Series, Game 6, before delivering a performance for the ages with a triple, a stolen base, a leaping catch at the wall to steal extra bases from Ron Gant, and a walk-off home run:"Guys, I just have one announcement to make: You guys should jump on my back tonight. I'm going to carry us."
Basketball
- In a time where NBA teams hadn't won back-to-back titles in 19 years, coaching legend Pat Riley of the Los Angeles Lakers said to the fans "Next year, we're gonna win it again!" They did.
- Paul Westphal's guarantee in the first round of the 1993 NBA Playoffs can be seen as that after the #1 seeded Phoenix Suns lost their first two games of the series to the #8 seeded Los Angeles Lakers in stunning fashion."We're down 0-2, and I know the next question is 'Are you guys dead?' No. We're going to win the series. We're going to win one Tuesday, then the next game's Thursday, we'll win there. Then we'll come back and we'll win this series on Sunday. And everybody'll say what a great series this was."
- The reverse-upset ended up happening, with the Suns eventually going to the NBA Finals that year.
- Despite being a top seed in the 2011 NBA Playoffs, the seven other teams in their conference openly expressed a preference on going up against the Dallas Mavericks (who would go on to win the title), believing they were an easy mark. Mavericks guard Jason Terry acknowledged the conceit and welcomed it:"They are going to get their chance, one by one."
Boxing
- "Marvelous" Marvin Hagler, before his match with Sugar Ray Leonard, commented on Leonard's troubles with a detached retina, saying "If he's fool enough to fight me, I'm fool enough to rip his eye out".
Ice Hockey
- 1994 Stanley Cup playoffs, Eastern Conference Final. The New York Rangers, 54 years removed from their last Stanley Cup victory (the longest Cup drought ever), just dropped Game 5 of their best-of-seven series against the New Jersey Devils 4-1 on home ice. Rangers captain Mark Messeir then came out and publicly declared the Rangers would win Game 6 at Brendan Byrne Arena (the Devils' home arena) to send the series back to Madison Square Garden for a deciding Game 7. After two periods the Devils were up 2-1, then Messier himself scored a natural hat trick (three goals in a row) in the third period and the Rangers win Game 6. Rangers win Game 7 in double overtime, then edge the Vancouver Canucks in seven games to win the Cup and end the Curse of 1940.
Mixed Martial Arts
- Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic's famous boast on his roundhouse kicks: "Right leg: hospital. Left leg: cemetery." While he's never actually killed anyone with his kicks, the fact remains that his left roundhouse kick to the head is just about the scariest thing any person can inflict on another human being.
Cycling
- After dislocating his shoulder in a crash in the 2015 Tour de France, and told it would be the most painful three weeks in his life, Aussie cyclist Adam Hansen simply wrote: "I eat pain for breakfast! Bring it on" on Twitter. Hansen holds the record for most consecutive grand tour completions with 20, starting at the 2011 Vuelta a España and ending at the 2018 Giro d'Italia.
