Rumors are swirling about a Conor McGregor vs Floyd Mayweather boxing match.
*Updated*
Just when Conor McGregor looked to be on the verge of losing his power struggle with the UFC, the Irish sensation has turned the tides and put MMA’s premier promotion on the back foot.
That’s according to British news outlet The Sun, who have reported that McGregor will lock horns with boxing mega star Floyd Mayweather in the boxing ring this Summer. No official announcement has been made, but both athletes are allegedly finalizing the contract and adding finishing touches to the paperwork.
Mayweather, who announced his retirement after beating Andre Berto last year, will return for a whopping £100 million ($144.8 million) pay cheque. ‘The Notorious’ is set to make £7 million ($10.1 million) for the mega-fight.
Sources close to The Sun revealed that boxing’s pound-for-pound king is ‘obsessed’ with teaching McGregor a lesson and has demanded that the UFC featherweight champion lose 25 lbs. for the fight.
McGregor was originally set to face Nate Diaz in a welterweight rematch at UFC 200 in July, but the SBG Ireland product was pulled from the card after refusing to fulful media obligations in Las Vegas.
Sources state that both fighters agreed to the bout on May 2; however, McGregor launched a series of tweets on the same day hyping a rematch with Diaz.
If the fight does take place, it could surpass Mayweather vs. Pacquiao as the highest grossing fight in combat sports history.
Update
MMA Fighting journalist Ariel Helwani has stated that there is absolutely no truth to the report:
Absolutely no truth to this McGregor-Mayweather story. I can’t believe people are actually falling for this nonsense. … (Cont’d)
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) May 6, 2016
A) McGregor has a UFC contract. He can’t just go fight Mayweather. And b) do you really think he would agree to those pay terms? C’mon now.
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) May 6, 2016