I haven’t actually watched STARZ’s Spartacus, apart from the video supplied, but am familiar with Roman historical depictions of Spartacus and the Third Servile War. It’s worth pointing out that, alongside all the usual problems with bias, these Roman historians may have been embellishing the heroics of Spartacus in order to accentuate the accomplishment of actually beating him. Plutarch, Appian and Florus (Orosius copies him) all talk about Spartacus’ revolt, with Plutarch in most detail.

Prior to the final battle, Plutarch depicts Spartacus as killing his horse as he will either take one from the Romans or not need one at all if he is defeated, something perhaps hinted at in the clip where Spartacus is depicted fighting on foot and Crassus on a horse.

During the final battle, Plutarch says that Spartacus made his way towards Crassus in an attempt to kill him. Spartacus almost makes it, killing two of Crassus’ bodyguards, who fell on the Roman general after being struck down. By this point in the battle, the rebel army appears to be routing, and Spartacus is isolated and surrounded, and ultimately goes down fighting, surrounded by Romans. In the video, Spartacus being killed not by Crassus but by three spears thrown by ordinary soldiers, is perhaps homage to his actual death, while at the same time including an overly dramatic sword fight for good measure.

Another historian, Appian, makes no mention of a final duel with Crassus’ guards, yet does say that he was struck by a spear-thrust through the leg, and continued to fight until he and his men were surrounded and killed.

Florus makes a short note of the end of the revolt, saying that Spartacus died fighting in the front ranks of his army. So, while not dying in a 1-vs-1 battle with Crassus, Spartacus was killed fighting courageously.

It is perhaps reading too much into a show like Spartacus but in Plutarch’s depiction of the penultimate rebel battle, he points out that only a few rebels were killed from behind, with every other rebel dying facing the Romans. In the video, Spartacus is hit three times from behind, perhaps paying tribute to this mention of the rebels’ courage.

While STARZ's Spartacus appears to be very inaccurate in many respects, Plutarch’s account is perhaps most closely looked to as the source material for this scene. It has to be remembered, however, that all the heroics depicted by the original Roman historians may have been embellished to make the Roman victors appear more supreme than they actually were.

Here's a link [7 minutes and 42 seconds long] to the Spartacus vs. Marcus Crassus fight. It's in English but with Spanish subtitles, since all of the other videos I found are either much shorter or set to music.

EDIT: Here's a link [starts at 18:44 and goes on for 2 minutes and 58 seconds] to the battle in which the trench was used. There is extra music overlaid over the scene, but I hope it isn't too much of an issue.

I just want to say that how the show depicts battles during that time period is extremely inaccurate. Everyone is just fighting one on one, and there is no cohesion what so ever, when in fact considering how physically demanding battles in ancient times was, hand to hand combat would most likely be fought in short intervals before one or both sides stepped back. During these small breaks one would maybe exchange missile fire and maybe rotate the lines. Battles would usually be fought in these intervals until one side started to rout and this was when heavy casaulties were sustained.

Probably wouldn't make for good tv, but they could at least have tried to get it somewhat right. Will site source if asked.