Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor is fast becoming the new Mayweather vs. Pacquiao. Both fighters want the fight to happen, the public wants it to happen — now the contract just needs to be worked out. On Wednesday night, UFC president Dana White threw his hat in the ring, saying, during an interview on Conan, he thinks we will see the two meet in a boxing ring:
Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor is ‘gonna happen,’ Dana White thinks
Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images
James Dator has been covering a wide range of sports for SB Nation for over a decade, with a special focus on the NFL.
“I do think it’s gonna happen,” White said Wednesday night on Conan. “I think it’s going to be a tough deal, because obviously [there are] a lot of egos involved in this deal and a lot of people, so that always makes it tougher. On the flip side, there’s so much money involved. I just don’t see how it doesn’t happen.”
As MMA Fighting reports, getting the contract signed is going to be difficult. McGregor is under a UFC contract which means the UFC will need to be cut in as one of the fight’s promoters, while Mayweather is asking for $100 million to come out of retirement for the fight.
The fighters have been dancing around each other publicly and trading barbs on social media, but it remains unclear whether anything tangible has progressed on the possibility of the superfight actually happening. In January, Mayweather poked fun at McGregor reportedly requesting a $25 million purse by comparing how much money both fighters have:
While Conor is taking shots of his own:
Despite the confidence, it’s unclear how McGregor would fare in a boxing match against Mayweather. The format clearly plays to Floyd’s strengths, but White doesn’t think the fight would be as clear-cut as many seem to believe:
“Conor McGregor is huge,” White said. “He’s 27 years old. He’s in the prime of his career. Floyd is 40. Floyd has always had a problem with southpaws. Conor is a southpaw. And Conor hits hard. When he hits people, they go. Floyd’s definitely not knocking him out — that’s for sure. I’m not saying that Conor would win this boxing match, but it sure makes it interesting.”
At this point, there’s been enough talking. Just make the dang thing happen.
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