Conor McGregor may have fallen short of his goal in a traditional sense when he was stopped by Floyd Mayweather in their anticipated boxing super fight (watch highlights here) last night (Sat., August 26, 2017) from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nev., but he showed the heart of a true champion in lasting 10 rounds with one of boxing’s all-time greats and also landing some great shots of his own early on.
In fact, that was enough to arguably win him the first three rounds, but towards the middle and especially later rounds, Mayweather’s expansive experience edge and supreme conditioning pulled away from the much less seasoned “Notorious,” leading to a tenth-round stoppage that many felt was early from referee Robert Byrd even if McGregor was in clear trouble and well on his way to losing the fight.
McGregor himself echoed that school of thought in his post-fight interview (quotes transcribed by MMA Fighting), noting that there was a ton on the line, and he often gets a bit tired and wobbly in his mixed martial arts bouts, so the match could have been allowed to continue a little longer:
“I thought it was close though and I thought it was a little early of a stoppage. I get like that when I’m tired. I get a little wobbly and flowy. But f**k, get me into the corner and I’ll recover and I’ll come back. And I’d like it to hit the floor. There’s a lot on the line here, (Byrd) should have let me keep going I thought, but fair play to (Mayweather).”
“The Notorious” continued on to focus on his prior loss to Nate Diaz in March 2016, a fight after which he rebounded to defeat Diaz in the rematch five months later. With his warrior spirit already established, McGregor would have at least liked Byrd to allow him to go out on his shield in his boxing debut:
“I’ve been here before,” McGregor said. “I’ve been strangled on live TV and came back, so I don’t know. I would have liked him to just let it go. F**k it. I got in here in the squared circle, everything was different, it was a lot more fun.”
McGregor then reiterated that the trouble he was in stemmed from fatigue rather than from any damage he was absorbing after he said Mayweather ‘wasn’t that fast or powerful,’ ending his interview by reaffirming his wish Byrd would have at least let him get knocked down:
“That’s exactly what it is, is fatigue,” McGregor continued. “That’s why I thought the ref could have just let it keep going, let me go down. Let the man put me down. Wobbly and fatigue, that’s energy, that’s not damage. I’m clear-headed.”
Clear-headed he appeared after the fight as well, and while he may have been stopped in a bout he repeatedly boasted he would win just that way, McGregor still earned the respect of the majority of a boxing community who had largely written him off, with some claiming he wouldn’t even land a punch on “Money.”
But he landed many, and he proved MMA fighters can compete with even the best boxers in the process, no small feat considering Mayweather’s truly legendary resume.
That’s a feat in and of itself, so early stoppage or not, McGregor accomplished a rare goal by battling Mayweather last night, even if he didn’t win.
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