Rumors of an imminent fight between Conor McGregor and Floyd Mayweather have been coming hard and fast for a couple months now. It got far enough along that some big network reporters claimed the match would go down September 17 in Las Vegas. Unfortunately for those who went ahead and booked flights and hotels, those rumors were nothing more than Floyd Mayweather trolling the media … and perhaps creating hype for a fight he hopes will eventually develop down the line.
As for Conor McGregor, he has a rematch against Nate Diaz at UFC 202 on August 20. Here’s what his coach John Kavanagh said that means for a fight with Mayweather. From MMA Underground, transcribed by MMA Fighting:
“It puts it on hold. I think that contest will happen eventually but it’s on hold for now. I’d be very surprised if it doesn’t at some stage. I think it’s a bigger fight; I think there’s a lot of intrigue about it. I could be 100% wrong. Right now we’re focusing on August 20th. We have an important rematch – a mixed martial arts fight – but if in time that fight was to be announced it would not surprise me and I think it would be an interesting one.”
…
“It’s hard to beat Floyd with boxing because he seems to be almost perfect in terms of how defensive he is. I think if you’re a classically trained boxer you’re gonna lose to Floyd because he just seems to make everybody look quite ordinary. But maybe somebody who doesn’t strike like a boxer might be a new look for him. Maybe the odd sly knee and leg kick as well. [Laughs.] You get two warnings. [Laughs.]
UFC president Dana White has let talk of the inter-sport fight continue, telling Mayweather to call him if he’s serious about the fight. So far, Floyd has not followed up. Perhaps that’s because all this chatter is nothing but a headline grabbing stunt, or perhaps it’s because Mayweather and McGregor don’t intend to include the UFC in their superfight plans. McGregor has five fights left on his current UFC deal, which he could complete by the end of 2017. Win or lose, a match worth half a billion dollars doesn’t sound like a terrible way to end a fight career.
https://youtu.be/Kydsn4hEKL4
(via MMA Underground and MMA Fighting)