Battle of the Legends Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor

Matching fighters from alternative disciplines is not a new thing but, despite the circus-like element of such an event, it always generates a huge amount of interest from the sporting world and beyond.

The sight of Mayweather, unbeaten in 49 contests, going toe-to-toe with a relative novice, making his boxing debut, could have been a bizarre spectacle had McGregor’s stellar body of work in a different combat discipline not been taken into account.

The Irishman had already proven his abilities inside the octagon, having claimed featherweight glory before moving up to take the lightweight crown. McGregor had dabbled in boxing as a youngster and retained some traits from that discipline that held him in good stead for a boxing match. Punching power and fundamental boxing skills were in place. Despite his lack of experience on the big stage, many gave McGregor a shot at upsetting Floyd due to his youth, exuberant personality and a track record of achievement in his MMA and UFC fights.

The main problem for the Dubliner, on that warm Las Vegas evening, was that standing in the opposite corner of the ring was no ordinary boxer. Featuring alongside McGregor in the Showtime Pay-Per-View attraction was Floyd Mayweather Jr, a modern boxing legend whose earning power and ability to draw a crowd held no match. People bought tickets and Pay-Per-Views, tuning in because they either loved Mayweather, or desperately wanted to see his unbeaten record popped. Either way, they always tuned in.

At the time, Mayweather’s boxing career had spanned 21 years, winning multiple world titles across five weight classes. In 2015, after years of protracted negotiations and false hope for fight fans, Floyd finally agreed to box generational rival Manny Pacquiao. Even though it was probably around five years too late from a fighting prime perspective, the score was settled, and Mayweather defeated the Filipino on points.

The version of Mayweather that Conor McGregor was fighting was not a prime specimen, but still the talented, experienced master boxer who had schooled a raw Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, eventually worked out and tamed Oscar De La Hoya and defeated a multitude of other world champions along the way.

A crowd just shy of 15,000 comfortably fitted in to the 20,000-capacity T-Mobile Arena for Mayweather-McGregor. Befitting a mega fight, famous faces dominated the most expensive ringside seats. 40-year-old Mayweather, who later admitted that McGregor turned out to be better than he expected, started slowly, using spear jabs to the body as his taller southpaw opponent stalked behind his own jab. Floyd scoped him out, perhaps surmising that letting the bout extend in to the latter stages would add further credibility to selling a rematch, should the need arise.

McGregor’s competent boxing skills, mixed with some unorthodox rough house tactics, earned Mayweather’s respect and the crowd’s endorsement early in the contest. By the sixth round, Mayweather was starting to find his rhythm and repeatedly landed the right hand - one of his staple weapons.

Mayweather’s strategy involved him taking McGregor into the later rounds of the fight, waiting for the UFC star to naturally slow down as the stamina and endurance requirements of their respective sports began to tell. McGregor was blowing hard by the ninth, holding his opponent, while shipping punches to head and body.

Mayweather’s accurate right hand was on point once again in the 10th round as McGregor sagged under the weight of his opponent’s accuracy and referee Robert Byrd stopped the fight. Mayweather promised everybody in advance that the fight would not go the distance, and he was correct.

Despite suffering from notoriously brittle hands throughout his career, Floyd’s conditioning and punch picking had worn down a brave yet outgunned foe. All three judges had Mayweather leading on the cards at the time of the finish. Four points, seven points and eight points were the respective margins.

Mayweather had done what was expected of him and pocketed a sizable cheque for his troubles. McGregor, meanwhile, had not disgraced himself either and was handsomely remunerated for his endeavours. As Floyd hung up his gloves, McGregor returned to his chosen sport with an 0-1 record in boxing but with this reputation as a combat athlete no doubt enhanced. The appetite for more cross-sport matchups increased, although it is unlikely that we will see one on the level of Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor again for many years to come.

Articel by Bushu.ch

Now watch the climax of Floyd Mayweather's fight against Conor McGregor.