Floyd Mayweather Jr. (Photo : Reuters)
MMA fight and UFC featherweight contender Conor McGregor believes he can break the zero-loss record of American boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. This he would do by crossing over from mixed martial arts to boxing.
The Irish bad boy of MMA shared his desire to meet "Money May" in the ring during his Thursday night guesting at Conan O'Brien's show to promote his UFC 189 upcoming bout versus Chad Mendes, reports Fox Sports. He acknowledged that Mayweather, recognized this week by Forbes as the highest-paid celebrity the past 12 months with an estimated earnings of $300 million, would not likely convert to MMA, so he would have to try boxing instead.
"If you're asking would I like to fight Floyd Mayweather - I mean, who would not like to dance around the ring for $180 million?" Fox quotes McGregor. He believes that his crossing over to another sport would generate a lot of interest among both MMA and boxing fans and possibly generate a huge payout for him.
Recent estimates placed Mayweather's total earnings from the May 2 "Fight of the Century" against Filipino champion Manny Pacquiao at $235 million, to include Money May's share in pay-per-view buys.
McGregor points out that "There's no real fight in boxing left for Floyd anyways." He continues, "After the Manny fight happened, there's no more real draws. If you're looking for a fight that would generate interest, it must be a cross and match up different styles."
In 2014, MMA's best female fighter, Ronda Rousey, also believes she can beat Mayweather, but the bout would be in an octagon ring. However, on May 19, Rousey, like Pacquiao's Friday statement in response to Mayweather's latest taunt, used a joke to bring up Money May's criminal record.
"I don't think that me and him would ever fight unless we ended up dating," LA Times quotes Rousey who was then promoting her new film "Entourage." Rousey was referring to Mayweather's notoriety of using as punching bags the women he once loved and fathered children.
McGregor, who fights in the same weight division as the Las Vegas native, insists, "I would most certainly dismantle him [Mayweather]." And if it would be Mayweather who would cross over to MMA, McGregor says the fight would likely end swiftly and "very violently."
