Mayweather says McGregor fight will likely happen

By Boxing News - 01/29/2017 - Comments

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By Allan Fox: Floyd Mayweather Jr. said last night that his fight against UFC star Conor McGregor will most likely happen, but he’s not sure when it will take place. Mayweather further said that McGregor is the only fight he’s interested in making a return to the boxing ring for.

Even if Mayweather and McGregor are able to negotiate the minefield of obstacles in front of them to agree on a purse split that makes them both happen, it’ll require one of the states in the U.S to agree to allow the Mayweather-McGregor fight to take place.

Dana White of the UFC said this week that he doesn’t see the Mayweather-McGregor fight happening. He made an offer of $25 million to Mayweather, which rejected. That was the last thing between them.

It’s a mismatch on paper involving one of the best fighters in the history of boxing taking on a novice with a 0-0 record in McGregor. Mayweather might need to shop around with different states to find one that will let the mismatch take place. It would be sad if Mayweather has to go outside of the U.S to stage the circus-like fight, which promises to a one-sided affair.

“Most likely the fight between me and Conor McGregor will happen,” Mayweather said to skysports.com. “That’s the only fight that will get me back in the ring. He’s going to do a job on his side and we are going to do a job on my side and hopefully all the fans in the UK come over and support me.”

It’s obvious why Mayweather is interested in the McGregor fight. It’s a big fight that will make him more money – without risk – than if he were to fight one of the top boxers. There isn’t anyone in boxing that Mayweather can fight that will give him a similar payday. The only guys Mayweather can fight in boxing that will give him a big payday is Saul Canelo Alvarez and Manny Pacquiao. Mayweather already beat both of them. There would be good money for Mayweather against either of them, but the money wouldn’t be at the level of the revenue he can make against McGregor. The fan interest wouldn’t be as high either. More importantly, the fights would be harder for Mayweather against Pacquiao and Canelo, because they’re experienced boxers.

Mayweather’s fight against McGregor could hurt the PPV industry for other circus fights between boxers and MMA fighters in the future. It would possibly work in the same way as Mayweather’s disappointing fight against Pacquiao in 2015. The fans had to pay through the roof to see that fight on PPV and life, and they thought it would be a thrilling fight with lots of action. Instead, Mayweather played it safe for 12 rounds, sometimes appearing to take rounds off, and doing just enough to win. You can argue the PPV industry hasn’t bounced back since then for boxing. If the same thing happens with the circus fights between boxers facing MMA fighters in the ring, then it may hurt the chances of McGregor and some of the other MMA fighters from making big money fighting other boxers like Canelo and Gennady Golovkin in the future.

“I don’t know (when it will be), I need to communicate with my team, the fight hasn’t been made yet, but it is all about entertainment so hopefully we can make it happen,” said Mayweather.

McGregor has about as much chance of beating Mayweather as a pro golfer like Tiger Woods. McGregor is from a different sport entirely, and he doesn’t have the background in boxing for him to be sharing the ring with Mayweather. If this is all about entertainment, then it’s taking things to the lowest level possible. It’s not sport. It’s entertainment. I think it dumbs down the sport when you get fights like this. But if these kinds of mismatches can help boxing in the long term stay relent, then it’s all good. It would be sad if the sport is reduced to boxers facing fighters from other sports in mismatches in order to make a buck at the expense of the fans.

The fans might end up feeling ripped off after seeing Mayweather toy with McGregor. There’s going to be a lot of gullible boxing and MMA fans that will purchase the Mayweather-McGregor fight on PPV, thinking that it will be competitive and believing that McGregor has a chance of winning. When the fight isn’t competitive, the fans will wonder why they wasted their money on the event. If the fans had made a careful decision ahead of time, they could spare themselves the displeasure at wasting their money on a mismatch between Mayweather and an inexperienced boxer.

McGregor has never fought before in a pro fight in a boxing ring. He does have good stand-up skills for an MMA fighter, but he still appears to be very crude with his skills. In looking at McGregor’s sparing video with boxer Chris Van Heerden, it’s clear that he doesn’t have the ability to compete with Mayweather. Van Heerden would likely do a number on McGregor. That’s the whole problem. Without any experience inside the ring, McGregor is going into a fight against Mayweather as guy that have never proven himself. What he’s done in MMA doesn’t count, because that’s more of a grappling sport that involves kicking and punching, but it’s not boxing. If McGregor had to at least prove himself first against another boxer before fighting Mayweather, it would make the fight worthwhile. If McGregor could take on someone like Errol Spence Jr. or Keith Thurman and beat them inside the ring to earn a fight against Mayweather, then it makes sense for the Mayweather-McGregor fight to take place. Apart from that, it doesn’t seem worth it.

McGregor will need to be given permission from the UFC for him to be able to take the fight with Mayweather. That’s an obstacle that he’ll need to hurdle before a fight against Mayweather can take place. Another big obstacle is the money split between Mayweather and McGregor. If the UFC is going to have their hands in the negotiations, then they’ll be looking for a very good deal. Mayweather is used o being the A-side and getting purses slanted heavily in his favor. Will the UFC agree to Mayweather getting the lion’s share of the money against McGregor or will they insist on the fight being even?

Mayweather isn’t going to take the fight unless he can make a huge amount of money. That’s what this is all about. Mayweather won’t make the huge money if he has to share the revenue with McGregor on even terms. I don’t think there’s going to be the kind of interest in this mismatch that Mayweather thinks. There are too many boxing fans that see the fight for what it is – a mismatch. The hardcore fans will likely stay away.

The casual boxing fans won’t know who McGregor is, so they won’t purchase the fight either. It could come down to the MMA fans being the ones that purchase the Mayweather-McGregor fight in large numbers or not. Do those fans see the fight as being worthy of plunking down $70 or even possible $100 to see what could be a mismatch? You would hope that the prices of the Mayweather vs. McGregor fight aren’t raised to the $100 level to take advantage of the fan interest like they did with the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight, but it wouldn’t be surprising if that’s what happens.