It’s the talking point of the month for the UFC and combat sports. A not-really-all-that-potential boxing match between UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor and Floyd Mayweather.
Joe Rogan has been making headlines lately. Mostly, because it seems like there’s a chance his time as a UFC broadcaster is running short. As his contract runs out in August, Rogan has been contemplating moving on to new pastures, more definitely so if the UFC sells. But, as he’s making the rounds, he’s also been opening up about a few other recent major news items in MMA, Conor McGregor being chief among them.
Nobody makes headlines quite like Conor McGregor does. Whether it’s sparring mammoth-sized actors, turning down a role in Vin Diesel’s new xXx movie, tweeting out one of the shortest lived MMA retirements, or teasing a never-in-a-million-years plan to box Floyd Mayweather. In a recent interview with Rolling Stone, Rogan took a moment to address that last bit of headline grabbing chatter:
“Um, I don’t think that it’s real. But, it could be,” Rogan told Rolling Stone. “And it wouldn’t be a good fight for Conor. I can’t imagine a world where Floyd Mayweather doesn’t box as good as Conor.”
And while nobody thinks it’s really a viable plan, Rogan did give some time to explain the nuances of transitioning from MMA to boxing and boxing to MMA, and why he’d absolutely pick Conor to win over Mayweather should Mayweather try his hand in the cage.
“But, what do I think would happen if Roy Jones Jr. [sic] fought Conor in an MMA match?” Rogan posited. “Conor would fuck him up, 100 percent. I would bet the house. I would literally bet my house that Conor would fuck him up. Unless Conor went crazy and cocky and decided to walk towards Floyd with his chin down, and Floyd cold-cocks him. Like have you ever seen Ray Mercer versus Tim Sylvia? Ray Mercer, who is an Olympic gold medalist and world heavyweight champion at one time, fought [MMA fighter] Tim Sylvia in an MMA match. It was supposed to be a boxing match, but the commission wouldn’t approve it because Ray Mercer was a world champion and Tim Sylvia had never fought as a boxer professionally…”
“See, Floyd Mayweather is not really that kind of a puncher,” Rogan said, referring to Mercer’s KO shot that put down Sylvia, “and with MMA gloves, probably even less so. But I don’t think it’s gonna happen. If it does happen, I’ll be shocked. I mean, if that’s what they’re meeting about, if Conor says, “I can make a lot of money,” and they get together and they decide they’re gonna make 100 million bucks, who knows? I mean, maybe the UFC co-promotes it with Floyd Mayweather and Conor goes in there and gets lit up, and then says, “Hey, I realize this is not my sport, I gotta go back to MMA,” then that’s possible too. I just can’t imagine a world where he’s quitting.”
With the recent meeting between McGregor and UFC brass, it’s sounding more and more like McGregor will be returning to the cage soon (although perhaps not against Nate Diaz). Stay tuned, as we’ll be sure to keep you posted with any news and updates of the fighting future of one of MMA’s biggest stars.