Former UFC champion Conor McGregor said recently that he plans on returning to the boxing ring for another fight. His trainer John Kavanagh says the 32-year-old McGregor (0-1) will be returning to the ring in 18 months, but he didn’t mention who he’ll be facing at that time.
OK, McGregor wants to come back to boxing, but you can argue that the majority of the fans don’t want to see him ever again inside a ring. If he does want to restart his career, he should go to beginning stages fighting amateurs because he doesn’t belong inside the ring with any of the elite boxers.
Many boxing fans felt like they were ripped off from the inferior product they got or their hard-earned money in paying $100 to watch McGregor and Floyd Mayweather Jr fight in a glorified 10-round sparring match.
McGregor has already made it clear that he’d like to fight 41-year-old Manny Pacquiao. He’s signed with the same management company as the Filipino star, and it’s thought that we could see the two of them fighting soon.
What McGregor and his trainer fail to grasp is a lot of people have no interest in seeing him fighting inside a boxing ring after his lackluster performance against Floyd Mayweather Jr three years ago in on August 26, 2017.
McGregor wants a good scrap
“I am willing to fight anyone and have proved that time and time again,” said McGregor to the Bleacher Report. “I look for a good scrap, and if it isn’t going to be that, I have no interest. The money is not why I do this.
“I am a very rich man. I love the fight game. I learned may things boxing in Crumlin where I grew up, and my deep love is why I do this today, and I will be in Octagon again soon and fully expect to box again,” said McGregor.
It’s safe to say that people will be furious if Pacquiao chooses to face McGregor on pay-per-view, being that it would likely sell for $100 per household. Even if it were just $75, that would be a steep price for what would be another mismatch involving McGregor.
If McGregor wants to take on a boxer, he should face someone like retired former world champion Paulie Malignaggi. That would be a fun fight to see Malignaggi take on McGregor. If not Malignaggi, then someone like retired former champion Kostya Tszyu or Ricky Hatton.
At least if McGregor fought someone old like those two, he’d have a chance this time of winning. McGregor can’t fight any of the active fighters because the boxing public won’t fall for it this time, and none of the promoters would likely want to take the risk of the match doing poorly. During the pandemic, there’s no chance for McGregor to fight a big name boxer without an audience.
“You need to stay tuned – but trust me, the fans will enjoy it. Giving them what they want and entertaining them is important to me,” said McGregor.