Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Conor McGregor will have one last chance to fire shots in the psychological battle that precedes their boxing superfight when they get together for the official weigh-in Friday night.
The two men will strip down to their shorts and step on the scales at 6 p.m. ET. Both men agreed to meet the 154-pound weight for the Saturday night fight, and while both fighters are likely to meet that weight, the rehydration process is likely to have an impact.
The weigh-in will be televised by Showtime.
McGregor is the naturally the bigger man, and he could weigh more than his opponent when the two men get in the ring at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Mayweather does not appear to be worried about that or any other aspect of the fight. In the weeks leading up to the bout, the Showtime cameras have documented both fighters’ activities in the All-Access series as they prepare.
Mayweather has tended to his Las Vegas strip club, taken lavish vacations, showed off his huge stash of cash and bought luxuries for his family. When the cameras have shown him in the gym, he has appeared to give a half-hearted effort to train for the fight.
McGregor has been all business in the gym, spending hours there in an effort to step up his boxing skills. The MMA champion has never been in the boxing ring for a professional bout, and he has sparred with former boxer and current analyst Paulie Malignaggi and others in an effort to prepare for his bout with the 49-0 Mayweather.
McGregor has also spent hours bicycling in the Las Vegas-area desert in an attempt to improve his stamina in case the bout is a long one. The fight is scheduled for 12 rounds, but McGregor has said he will stop Mayweather within four rounds.
The buzz for the fight has been heavy throughout the buildup, and much of that has manifested itself in pre-fight wagering. Mayweather is a minus-450 favorite (risk $450 to earn a $100 profit) to win the fight, while McGregor is a plus-$325 underdog, according to OddsShark. The odds on Mayweather have come down quite a bit since the fight became official, as the large majority of bets have come in on the Irish fighter.
Mayweather was favored at 11-1 when the fight was announced, but the odds have been lowered steadily as the money poured in on McGregor.
“There’s plenty of money on a guy who has never been in a boxing ring. It’s uncharted waters, and that’s what makes it so interesting,” said oddsmaker Jimmy Vaccaro of the South Point resort, per Tim Dahlberg of the Associated Press (h/t Boston Globe).
Prediction
While McGregor is a dangerous man in an MMA ring and has not wavered in his outward confidence, the idea that he will consistently connect with powerful punches is difficult to accept.
Even though Mayweather’s training regimen has been limited, one of his greatest skills is his ability to avoid heavy punches and frustrate his opponent with his defense. He is one of the greatest defensive fighters of all-time, and several weeks of training and sparring sessions by McGregor is not going to change that.
Despite all the bluster on both sides, we see this fight going the distance. That’s the way most of Mayweather’s fights go, and Money should take a one-sided decision once again.
McGregor may have explanations and excuses after the fight, but none of that will matter as he gets beaten decisively.
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