Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Conor McGregor did exactly what they set out to do on Saturday night: Entertain fans and make mountains of money while doing so.
In the end, the man they call Money walked away from the combat sports extravaganza as the winner. He scored a technical knockout victory over the UFC star in the 10th round, but not before the two put on an intriguing and entertaining show.
Now that it’s over, the only thing left to do is sit back and watch just how much money they’ll bring in on this whole deal. As pay-per-view numbers begin trickling in, the picture will be more clear.
For now, we do know where each fighter will start in terms of the revenue share. According to The Telegraph, McGregor is guaranteed to make $30 million for stepping into the ring on Saturday night, while Mayweather’s minimum is set at $100 million.
Of course, both fighters will likely wind up with much more cash than that lining their pockets (or suits in McGregor‘s case). In the post-fight press conference, Mayweather said that the fight had already broken the live gate record despite not selling out.
“We did break the record tonight for the biggest gate,” Mayweather said, per Yahoo. “Me and Pacquiao done $72 million. I think we done somewhere over $80 million in the live gate (with McGregor).”
Mayweather went on to say that the fight had also broken the pay-per-view record, but he didn’t elaborate on the numbers.
Darren Rovell of ESPN noted just how crazy it is to see how far boxing has taken Mayweather in accumulating wealth:
While the money is mind-boggling, the fans were treated to a fight that helped ease their mind about the big price tag. McGregor showcased his skills early on while Mayweather came forward as advertised and engaged in an exciting fight.
McGregor came ahead early in the fight. As the anticipation of this bout gave way to actual fighting, McGregor‘s first round showed a fighter that wasn’t afraid of the moment and was ready to put on a show. He was measured, but assertive.
The Notorious landed a clean uppercut that showed he could get his fist to Mayweather’s chin. It was the first notable punch of the fight and had fans thinking they were in for something special.
McGregor continued that pace through the first four rounds, as many who were scoring the fight at home believed the MMA star was winning the fight. Round 5 is where Mayweather’s aggression started to shine through.
ESPN Stats & Info noted the uptick in his production once he got going:
As the rounds progressed, McGregor continued to press forward and didn’t take any rounds off. But Mayweather responded in kind and started to land harder shots even more regularly.
Showtime Boxing captured a few of the harder shots the boxing superstar landed as the fight began heading toward the end.
With McGregor gasping for air, hopes for the Notorious faithful began to fade. Money almost drew a finish at the end of the ninth frame with flurry after flurry and no recourse. However, McGregor evaded the finish long enough to hear the bell.
Coming out in the 10th and final round, McGregor fired a body shot that was ruled a low blow, showing his final signs of life in the fight. Mayweather was patient in allowing McGregor to punch himself out a little more before going to close the fight out, but he moved quickly once he set his mind to it.
McGregor never went down, but his legs were definitely suspect. After repeated shots to the head with no response, referee Robert Byrd saw it fit to end the fight.
It was a fitting end to an exciting bout. While fans have been burned by Mayweather fights before, this one had a little bit of everything, including a finish. It was the first time that Mayweather had finished a fight since 2011, when he scored a controversial knockout of Victor Ortiz.
With all the money that was made and the quality of the fight, it would be surprising if this is the last big-money fight that sees McGregor in the ring. Mayweather, however, provided the last memorable moment of the fight as he made sure to let everyone know he was calling it a career, per Showtime Boxing:
The landscape of big-money fights in boxing won’t be the same without Mayweather, and this was a fitting end to his era of pay-per-view dominance.
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