Author: Joseph Zucker

Jessie Vargas Says Conor McGregor Was KO’d During Sparring for Floyd Mayweather

While Conor McGregor spent the last week going toe to toe with Floyd Mayweather Jr. on the microphone, former world champion Jessie Vargas cast further doubt on whether McGregor can hang with Mayweather in the ring.
In an interview with Villainfy Media…

While Conor McGregor spent the last week going toe to toe with Floyd Mayweather Jr. on the microphone, former world champion Jessie Vargas cast further doubt on whether McGregor can hang with Mayweather in the ring.

In an interview with Villainfy Media, Vargas said McGregor got knocked out during a sparring session in preparation for his Aug. 26 bout with Mayweather.

(Warning: Video contains NSFW language.)

While considered a great striker in a mixed martial arts capacity, many question whether McGregor has bitten off more than he can chew in a fight against Mayweather.

In June, Chris van Heerden shared a clip of himself sparring with McGregor, and the UFC lightweight champion looked overmatched:

McGregor also failed to silence his critics with a training montage he posted to Twitter in June:

Mayweather posted a training clip on the same day and hasn’t appeared to lose much speed despite spending over a year-and-a-half out of the ring:

According to OddsShark, McGregor is a 7-2 underdog against Mayweather.

McGregor’s months of training should pay off with regard to making him an improved boxer, but he’s facing a nearly impossible task of bridging a gap with one of the best defensive boxers in the history of the sport.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Floyd Mayweather, Conor McGregor Smack Talk at Presser; Notorious Denies Racism

Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Conor McGregor entered the third day of their world press tour Thursday to hype up their Aug. 26 superfight at Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena. 
Having already hit Los Angeles and Toronto, Mayweather and McGregor continued eastw…

Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Conor McGregor entered the third day of their world press tour Thursday to hype up their Aug. 26 superfight at Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena. 

Having already hit Los Angeles and Toronto, Mayweather and McGregor continued eastward to occupy Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

The pair didn’t disappoint in their first two stops, with MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani scoring the first day in favor of Mayweather and the second for McGregor.

After watching Wednesday’s event, Fox Sports’ Skip Bayless and MMAjunkie’s Chamatkar Sandhu thought the two stars have already used their best stuff:

Before they traded verbal jabs, McGregor earned a knockout in the fashion category. Showtime Boxing showed him entering Barclays Center:

Rather than McGregor, the Brooklyn crowded landed the first blow on Mayweather, referencing the back taxes he owes the federal government. Helwani shared a clip of the fans chanting “pay your taxes” at the unbeaten boxer:

At one point, Mayweather showered a seated McGregor with dollar bills after calling him a stripper. The stunt made the crowd hassle Mayweather even more about his taxes, according to Sports Illustrated‘s Greg Bishop.

Sports Illustrated confirmed Mayweather threw genuine $1 bills:

During his time on the microphone, McGregor added to a controversy he created when he told Mayweather to “dance for me, boy” during their stops in Los Angeles and Toronto, per Yahoo Sports’ Ryan McKinnell. Some saw the remark as racially insensitive, and McGregor seemed to dig himself in a deeper hole Thursday.

He denied that he was racist and told the crowd he’s half-black.

“Do they not know I’m half black?” McGregor said, per MMAFighting.com. “I’m half-black from the belly button down.”

He also said he has “a present for my beautiful, black female fans” in Barclays Center before thrusting his hips in a suggestive manner, according to Mike Coppinger of The Ring Magazine.

Speaking to reporters after Thursday’s event, McGregor offered a more nuanced response to the story, per Bleacher Report’s Alex Larsen:

Mayweather and McGregor will head to their final stop on their world tour Friday in London at SSE Arena.

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Conor McGregor Calls Rocky III ‘The One with the Dancing Monkeys’

Already embroiled in one controversy regarding a possibly insensitive comment he said to Floyd Mayweather, Conor McGregor referenced Rocky III as the one in the film series with “the dancing monkeys.”
McGregor made the reference during an interview wit…

Already embroiled in one controversy regarding a possibly insensitive comment he said to Floyd Mayweather, Conor McGregor referenced Rocky III as the one in the film series with “the dancing monkeys.”

McGregor made the reference during an interview with Jimmy Kimmel Live‘s Guillermo Rodriguez. According to USA Today‘s A.J. Perez, Rodriguez asked McGregor if he could beat Rocky Balboa from Rocky III.

“I’m trying to remember which one was Rocky III,” McGregor said. “Was that the one in the celebrity gym? I can’t remember if that’s the one with the dancing monkeys or not.”

McGregor and Mayweather are in the midst of a four-stop world tour to promote their Aug. 26 fight. During their event in Los Angeles on Tuesday, McGregor told Mayweather to “dance for me, boy,” per Yahoo Sports’ Ryan McKinnell.

Mayweather brushed the comment aside when asked about it by TMZ Sports.

“Racism still exists but you know, I try to take something negative and turn it into something positive,” he said. “A lot of people say that Conor McGregor is racist but I don’t worry about that.”

McGregor addressed the story during Thursday’s event in Brooklyn, New York, denying that he’s racist and saying he’s “half-black from the belly button down,” per MMAFighting.com.

Mayweather and McGregor will conclude their tour Friday in London at SSE Arena.

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Conor McGregor Says Floyd Mayweather Should Have Paid His Taxes, Stayed Retired

Ahead of their Aug. 26 fight, Conor McGregor used Floyd Mayweather Jr.’s tax situation as an opportunity to get a dig in on his opponent.
“That’s gotta sting,” McGregor said in an interview with TMZ Sports. “… He shoulda paid his taxes and stayed ret…

Ahead of their Aug. 26 fight, Conor McGregor used Floyd Mayweather Jr.’s tax situation as an opportunity to get a dig in on his opponent.

“That’s gotta sting,” McGregor said in an interview with TMZ Sports. “… He shoulda paid his taxes and stayed retired and kept my name out of his mouth” (Warning: Video contains NSFW language):

On Monday, ESPN.com’s Darren Rovell shared a report from Law360’s Bryan Koenig that stated Mayweather asked the federal government to wait before collecting the taxes he owes from 2015.

Rovell noted that failing to pay taxes on time generally results in a 0.5 percent penalty for every month the taxes are overdue. Mayweather would then owe the government 7.5 percent in addition to his overdue taxes, which Koenig didn’t identify.

In the petition they filed on Mayweather’s behalf, his representatives wrote the boxer has a “significant liquidity event scheduled in about 60 days” that will help him pay his outstanding tax bill, per Koenig, which is almost certainly Mayweather’s bout with McGregor.

BoxingScene.com’s Keith Idec reported Mayweather could make as much as $100 million for his fight purse, which wouldn’t take into account his share of the fight’s gate and pay-per-view revenues.

The Los Angeles Times‘ Lance Pugmire reported the pay-per-view fee for Mayweather vs. McGregor will be $99.95 for the high-definition broadcast and $89.95 for the standard broadcast.

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Conor McGregor’s Sparring Partner Says MMA Fighter Can’t Beat Floyd Mayweather

A former sparring partner for Conor McGregor doesn’t have high hopes for the UFC star when he steps inside the ring with Floyd Mayweather.
Chris van Heerden, who sparred with McGregor in May 2016, told TMZ Sports he landed shots “at will” on McGregor d…

A former sparring partner for Conor McGregor doesn’t have high hopes for the UFC star when he steps inside the ring with Floyd Mayweather.

Chris van Heerden, who sparred with McGregor in May 2016, told TMZ Sports he landed shots “at will” on McGregor during their session when Van Heerden was “out of camp, out of shape.” The former IBO welterweight champion added that even if McGregor can land a punch, Mayweather could easily withstand it.

 

After months of hype, McGregor and Mayweather confirmed on Instagram they’ll step inside the ring Aug. 26 in Las Vegas:

While considered a good striker, many question whether McGregor will be able to hold his own against Mayweather, who’s one of the best boxers in the sport’s history.

On Wednesday, Van Heerden also shared video of a sparring session with McGregor, who looked overmatched:

Assuming the video is from their May 2016 session, McGregor has had a lot of time to continue training and would presumably be more comfortable boxing at this point.

Still, combat sports fans have seen stuff like this before, whether it was CM Punk’s less-than-encouraging training video or the clip of Ronda Rousey’s questionable boxing technique.

McGregor can train like a madman for the next two months, but he’s facing somebody who will have decades more experience in boxing. Bridging that gap is might be impossible, especially without Mayweather showing significant decline in his most victories over Manny Pacquiao and Andre Berto in 2015.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Floyd Mayweather, Conor McGregor Fight Venue Reportedly Las Vegas T-Mobile Arena

UFC President Dana White confirmed to TMZ Sports Wednesday that Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor will fight inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. 
The Los Angeles Times’ Lance Pugmire had previously reported the Nevada Athletic Commission granted…

UFC President Dana White confirmed to TMZ Sports Wednesday that Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor will fight inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. 

The Los Angeles Times‘ Lance Pugmire had previously reported the Nevada Athletic Commission granted a request from Mayweather Promotions to schedule the fight for Aug. 26 at MGM Grand.

Pugmire explained the trade-offs with each venue. The MGM Grand would’ve afforded Mayweather’s manager, Al Haymon, more control over ticket prices for prospective brokers, while T-Mobile Arena seats roughly 4,000 more, thus allowing for more overall revenue.

Whereas Mayweather vs. McGregor was still a hypothetical before Wednesday, the two confirmed the event in respective Instagram posts:

For Mayweather, the McGregor fight will be his first outside MGM Grand Garden Arena since 2006. The arena has become a second home for the 40-year-old.

McGregor, meanwhile, will be more familiar with T-Mobile Arena after beating Nate Diaz there at UFC 202 in August 2016.

TMZ Sports reported specifics about ticket prices for Mayweather vs. McGregor will be announced at a later date.

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