UFC President Dana White told Undisputed that he has a meeting with Floyd Mayweather‘s people on Thursday and added that “anything is possible” when discussing the rumors of Mayweather potentially fighting in the UFC in the future.
“I did not believe McGregor-Mayweather would happen and it did,” White added. “So anything is possible.”
The Mayweather-to-UFC rumors kicked into overdrive when Mayweather suggested he could fight in the UFC if he had that desire, though he later made it clear he was only speaking hypothetically.
“Exactly what I said is this: If I could make over a billion dollars before, I could do it again,” Mayweather told FightHype.com. “If I chose to get in the UFC and fight three fights or fight four fights and then fight Conor McGregor, I could make a billion dollars. Which I can. I could do it in three fights or even four fights—I could make a billion dollars. If I choose to get in the Octagon and fight.”
Mayweather also said in that interview that he wasn’t going to fight in the UFC. White, however, has continually maintained that the UFC is in talks about bringing the 50-0 boxer into the fold.
“We’re talking to Floyd about doing a UFC deal,” White said on Dec. 20, per Brett Okamoto of ESPN.com. “It’s real. He was talking about [boxing] McGregor. Was that real? Have you heard Floyd talk about many things that aren’t real? He usually tips his hand when he’s in the media, and then that s–t ends up happening.
“We’re interested in doing something with Floyd. Everything is a realistic possibility.”
As the old saying goes, where there’s smoke, there’s fire. Mayweather, ever the consummate businessman, could simply be exploring all of his options. Or White and the UFC could be putting on the full-court press to land Mayweather on a multiple-fight contract, enticed by the boxer’s ability to draw huge publicity and money. Or perhaps Mayweather is interested in testing how his boxing acumen translates into the world of MMA, knowing his undefeated boxing record is secure.
Of course, just as McGregor wasn’t given much of a chance in a boxing ring against Mayweather, it’s hard to imagine the latter being given much of a chance in the Octagon. It would be fascinating to see how he fared, however, the sort of intrigue that could make men like Mayweather and White a whole lot of money.
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