Conor McGregor made headlines last week with the news that he had obtained a boxing license in California, heating up rumors that he was looking to stage a superfight with pugilistic great Floyd Mayweather. For months, Mayweather talked up the possibility of an intersport match between the two. But now that McGregor is making moves towards it being a reality, he seems much less eager.
Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe called the move a “calculated effort to gain more fans,” and that the UFC’s owners would never let the fight happen because Conor would “get his ass beat from pillar to post.” Meanwhile, UFC president Dana White doesn’t seem to know exactly what McGregor is up to, but agrees with the sentiment that the Irish fighter is restricted to UFC matches only. Via Yahoo Sports:
“I have no idea what Conor is doing,” White told Yahoo Sports when asked his opinion of McGregor obtaining a boxing license. “Conor’s Conor. He does his thing. But he’s under contract to me. Who knows with this guy? Who knows what he is up to. I just let Conor be Conor. And the other thing is, it’s fun to talk about this fight and what might happen, but what commission would let that fight happen? Really, think about that.”
But that hasn’t stopped Conor McGregor from continuing to talk a fight up. Over the weekend he sure sounded like someone who was seriously considering a run in the world of boxing. And if Floyd wasn’t interested in challenging him, he had other options on his mind.
“He can be hit. He’s been hit before,” McGregor said regarding Mayweather. “Age waits for no man also, so I know they know that. I know the size is on my side, I know the reach is on my side, I know the youth is on my side. So there’s a lot to lose for them, so that’s why they’re scrambling. McGregor got his boxing license ‘Oh, Floyd’s in the Bahamas, he don’t give a fuck.’ They’re scrambling right now, but that’s okay. I’ll leave them scrambling.”
“I have some other boxing opportunities, some potential opponents in mind, some previous Floyd opponents, I can bring in anyone in the game. So we’ll see what happens.”
We have to wonder if McGregor is referencing Manny Pacquiao, who is one of Floyd’s past opponents and would certainly qualify as a superfight. As for Dana’s question regarding what boxing commission would license McGregor … we have a feeling something like that would fly in the Philippines, too.