Still interested in a possible Floyd Mayweather-Conor McGregor “super-fight?” Money Mayweather sure is, and he’s gone on record as saying he will pay the UFC star the figure of $15 million, along with a slice of the Pay-per-View revenue, for the fight to happen – under boxing rules.
Mayweather, speaking on ESPN’s “First Take” yesterday evening, said “Let’s make it happen.”
The recent news that MMA superstar Conor McGregor got himself a license to box in the state of California really did start a scrum of activity amongst active and even inactive boxers, all of whom want a piece of McGregor in his assumed boxing debut/tune-up ahead of his hoped for (but very unlikely) mega-match with Floyd Mayweather.
The latest boxer to call McGregor out is Australian lightweight warrior Michael Katsidis. Katsidis, as he explained to The Gold Coast Bulletin, is ready and willing to finish off his exciting ring career with a fight against McGregor. “The Great,” as Katsidis, the former WBO 135-pound champ is known, predicts a “Fight of The Year” bout if McGregor takes him up on his offer to face him.
MMA star Conor McGregor continues to talk and talk about a potential fight with Floyd Mayweather – this despite that fact that Mayweather and Dana White, with whom McGregor is contracted, say there is no real chance it will take place. The UFC champ remains hopeful the fight will happen and at an appearance in Belfast, McGregor spoke to the media about how he sees his chances against Mayweather.
“If I focus with the work ethic I have solely on the sport of boxing, there’s no telling what I could do,” McGregor said. “I would not go in there [against Mayweather] just to show up, I’d go in there to knock [Mayweather] out. He can be hit. He’s been hit before. Age waits for no man. I know the size is on my side. I know the reach is on my side. I know the youth is on my side.”
MMA superstar Conor McGregor has been successful in his attempts at getting himself a license to box in the state of California, and though this news does not in all likelihood mean we are any closer to seeing the much talked about McGregor-Floyd Mayweather “Super-Fight,” actually take place, it does mean other pro boxers are already busy calling McGregor out.
One of these boxers is former two-time world champ Paulie Malignaggi. Upon hearing about McGregor’s success in California, “The Magic Man” took to his official Twitter account to call the Irishman out.
During the relatively short history of the two “rival” sports being in existence at the same time, fight fans have not been treated to too many, if any, glorious spectacles whenever a boxer has crossed over to fight an MMA fighter, or vice-versa. We’ve seen big names from both sports try it (think James Toney succumbing against Randy Couture for an MMA victory over boxing, to Ray Mercer icing Tim Sylvia for a boxing triumph over MMA) but it’s never been too pretty.
While talk has apparently quieted over the possibility of a super fight between boxing master Floyd Mayweather Junior and MMA star Conor McGregor, another high profile boxer has thrown his hat into the ring and said he would take a fight with McGregor: Amir Khan. Speaking with Flocombat.com, the former 140-pound world champion said that he has serious doubts Mayweather – the man he chased for months whilst in search of a massive fight, all to no avail – would ever agree to fight McGregor in an MMA fight, but he himself would do so.
“McGregor is a massive name in MMA and I’m a big name in boxing, so, globally, I think it would be a massive fight,” Khan said. “I don’t think [Floyd] Mayweather would want to fight under MMA rules. I’ve been fighting all my life, so for me, I don’t think it’d be a problem for me to learn and switch over to the sport.”
Well, that was short-lived. Earlier today, a “news” story broke regarding a possible, in fact an imminent, Floyd Mayweather-Conor McGregor super-duper-mega-fight set for Las Vegas. As per a report in UK tabloid The Sun, who quoted “a source close to Mayweather,” the fight would be announced soon. Well, no it won’t.
Few fans believed it anyway, but UFC President Dana White, in speaking with Lance Pugmire of The LA Times, put the story firmly to bed today.