The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 12 letter word HEAD-TO-HEAD
I've seen this crossword clue in Financial Times
H
E
A
D
-
T
O
-
H
E
A
D
More clues leading to the result HEAD-TO-HEAD
Buddy explains!
The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does HEAD-TO-HEAD mean?
HEAD-TO-HEAD adjective- Direct, one-to-one.
- Facing one another.
- Directly, one-to-one.