Tag: MMA vs. boxing

The McGregor Effect: 10 UFC Stars Seeking Blockbuster Boxing Bouts

Ever since UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor first began seriously pursuing a boxing match with Floyd Mayweather, more and more UFC stars have been making it clear that they are eager to follow in his footsteps. With the blockbuster bout in Las Vegas having generated an unprecedented level of interest around the globe, racked up […]

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Ever since UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor first began seriously pursuing a boxing match with Floyd Mayweather, more and more UFC stars have been making it clear that they are eager to follow in his footsteps.

With the blockbuster bout in Las Vegas having generated an unprecedented level of interest around the globe, racked up millions of buys on pay-per-view, and earned both fighters astronomical amounts of money, that’s a trend that’s set to continue, and it’s certainly not beyond the realms of possibility that there could be more crossover fights like this in the future.

In this article, we’ll focus on 10 UFC stars – including several current and former champions – that are now demanding to be next in line to test themselves in ‘The Sweet Science,’ and look at the blockbuster match-ups they have in mind for their boxing debuts.

Stipe Miocic

Not content to just be the UFC heavyweight champion of the world, Stipe Miocic also has his eye on winning a boxing heavyweight title too.

”Want a more exciting fight?” Miocic wrote on Twitter after the conclusion of Mayweather Vs McGregor. “The two best heavyweights in the world. @anthonyfjoshua let’s do this. Don’t be scared homie!”

This wasn’t Miocic’s first attempt to call out the heavyweight champion, but his initial attempt a couple of months earlier hadn’t received the response he’d hoped for, with Joshua mimicking Conor McGregor in his reply, stating, “Who the foook is that guy?”

”This guy” is the universally recognized as the baddest man on the planet,” Miocic had fired back. “You aren’t even the baddest man in the UK.”

Anthony Joshua

It was a good response, but truth be told, the undefeated Anthony Joshua is now the king of heavyweight boxing in 2017, having beaten the legendary Vladimir Klitschko by 11th round TKO in an instant-classic battle at Wembley Stadium earlier this year to claim the IBF, WBA (Super) and IBO heavyweight titles.

Still, Miocic is riding high on confidence after defeating Fabricio Werdum to win the UFC title last year, followed up by two successful defenses against Alistair Overeem and Junior dos Santos, all coming by way of strikes in the first round, and he feels his background as a former Golden Gloves boxing champion lends his bid more credibility.

Nevertheless, Joshua has yet to take the bait, and in fact, at the time of writing, he’s just lined up his next fight against Kubrat Pulev in October.

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Floyd Mayweather Fuels McGregor Fire During Latest TV Appearance

Last night was a big one for Floyd Mayweather. Now retired, ‘Money’ has been focusing a lot of time and energy on the next generation of boxers. Among those promising prospects is Swedish ‘Ripper’ Badou Jack. Facing James DeGale in a highly anticipated unification bout last night, fireworks were delivered. Jack signed to Mayweather promotions

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Last night was a big one for Floyd Mayweather. Now retired, ‘Money’ has been focusing a lot of time and energy on the next generation of boxers. Among those promising prospects is Swedish ‘Ripper’ Badou Jack. Facing James DeGale in a highly anticipated unification bout last night, fireworks were delivered. Jack signed to Mayweather promotions four years ago, and since then won the WBC super middleweight title. With the IBF belt in hand, the Brit DeGale also came prepared for war. Fans in Brooklyn, New York were treated to a thrilling 12-round battle.

Trading knockdowns, the two shared some particularly narrow rounds. Scoring the bout 114-112 for DeGale, and 113 even, the judges left the door open for a rematch. Highlights are available at the foot of the article.

Mandatory Credit: USA Today Boxing

Mayweather’s Ringside Comments

True to his nature, Mayweather was promoting yet again, and not only the boxing match featuring his protégé. Responding to questions about the heavily rumoured bout with Conor McGregor, ‘Money’ added more fuel to the fire, as quoted by Bloody Elbow:

“(I) Absolutely (want to fight Conor McGregor). I’m a businessman… We can do some crazy numbers. If it’s Conor McGregor, [coming back] makes sense for me. But if it’s anyone else, it doesn’t make sense. Not for me.”

For the first time since this whole saga began, UFC president Dana White gave the fight some credibility this week. Offering McGregor and Mayweather $25 million plus PPV points, White put out the first legitimate purse.

Wouldn’t It Be Nice

Star power and money fights have taken MMA in a strange direction lately. Aside from the massive pay-per-view draw it would be, it would be interesting to see the MMA vs. boxing story play out.

Here are some of the highlights from Badou Jack vs. James DeGale in New York last night:

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Freddie Roach: Conor McGregor’s Girly Punches Didn’t Hurt Diaz

UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor continued his assault on the stars of MMA this week. Talking to the stage at the UFC 205 presser, McGregor’s performance was almost a carbon copy of the ‘Go Big’ conference. Blasting just about anybody and everybody, ‘The Notorious’ also found himself a new rival in Jeremy Stephens. Since their

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UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor continued his assault on the stars of MMA this week. Talking to the stage at the UFC 205 presser, McGregor’s performance was almost a carbon copy of the ‘Go Big’ conference. Blasting just about anybody and everybody, ‘The Notorious’ also found himself a new rival in Jeremy Stephens. Since their back-and-forth on stage this week, Stephens has gone on to blast McGregor as a ‘ginger crackhead,’ claiming the Irish star hid from him backstage following their spat.

As we know, it’s not just the stars of the UFC that ‘The Notorious’ rubs up the wrong way. After feuds with the stars of the WWE and pro boxing surfaced, it was clear that everyone wants a piece of the featherweight champion. The 145-pound division seems to be seething in McGregor’s absence, leading to interim champion Jose Aldo’s recent boil-over. Demanding a release from his UFC contract, Aldo cited McGregor’s three fights in different weight divisions as one of many reasons. To the case in point, multiple divisions in the world of boxing is commonplace, and one man who recently said he’d fight McGregor in the squared circle is Manny Pacquiao.

Manny Pacquiao

McGregor vs. Pacquiao

Eight-division champion and modern boxing legend Manny Pacquiao recently said he’d be willing to fight Conor McGregor in a boxing match. Beef with Floyd Mayweather earlier this year lead to wild rumours of a fight with the Irish striker, and ‘Pac Man’ seemed open to join the trend. Discussing McGregor’s most recent fight with Nate Diaz at UFC 202, Pacquiao’s coach Freddy Roach says he wasn’t impressed. Here’s the famed boxing trainer’s comments to ES News:

“At least [he needs three years to get ready for a boxing fight]. He punched like a girl. I mean that’s why the other guy couldn’t get – he couldn’t hurt the other guy. Well, he did knock him down three times. Diaz is usually a bit tougher than that.”

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Punches Like a Girl?

Acknowledging that MMA and boxing are two very different sports is a fair assessment. Even in terms of the striking, boxing specifically in MMA, it’s a whole different ball game. Did McGregor punch like a girl? You’d have to ask Nate Diaz. Roach continues, putting a damper on fans’ hopes of seeing McGregor in a boxing match with Pacquiao:

“MMA and boxing do not mix. What rules are they going to fight under? Whatever rules they fight under, that’s whose going to win the fight. I mean he’s (McGregor) not a boxer, he’s (Pacquiao) not a wrestler. It’s fucking two separate sports.”

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Next!

Conor McGregor has a fierce striker to train for in Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205. We know the lightweight champion does hit with great power, so both McGregor’s defense and offense will need to be sound. At stake is promotional history both n the form of the first event in New York, but also in having their biggest star hold two belts at once. As for that ‘left field’ announcement Dana White recently teased, is a trip to the boxing ring what McGregor now has in mind?

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Manny Pacquiao Says He’ll Fight Conor McGregor, But Not In MMA

UFC featherweight kingpin Conor McGregor has done a bang-up job of creating rivalries with pretty much everyone. That may sound like a blanket statement, but in terms of the sports world it’s rather accurate. Ever since McGregor joined the UFC in 2013, the Irish star has made sure everyone could hear him. UFC featherweight legend

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UFC featherweight kingpin Conor McGregor has done a bang-up job of creating rivalries with pretty much everyone. That may sound like a blanket statement, but in terms of the sports world it’s rather accurate. Ever since McGregor joined the UFC in 2013, the Irish star has made sure everyone could hear him. UFC featherweight legend Jose Aldo was at the top of ‘The Notorious” hit list.

Outside of rivalries with the likes of Aldo and two-time opponent Nate Diaz, the Irishman has been broadening his horizons. Feuds with stars of the world wrestling entertainment further proved McGregor is permanently trending on social media. Following rumours of a fight with Floyd Mayweather, ‘The Notorious’ has been constantly linked to the boxing world too.

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UFC vs. Boxing

The boxing vs. mixed martial arts debate has never really been settled. James Toney vs. Randy Couture is not exactly a great example, people are more interested in seeing current champions crossing over in to the UFC. That’s where McGregor’s rivalry with Floyd Mayweather and later Canelo Alvarez comes in to it. After Mayweather vs. McGregor was debunked, the brash Irish trash talker set his sights on Canelo. He blasted the former WBC middleweight boss for vacating his belt and opting not to fight Gennady Golovkin.

Alvarez responded by offering McGregor a lesson in the art of boxing. Now another legendary boxer is chiming in on the discussion. This time its modern boxing icon Manny Pacquiao. The eight weight boxing great says he’d welcome a fight with Conor McGregor during a recent interview with ES News. The only caveat is that ‘Pac Man’ would want the fight in a boxing ring as opposed to an octagon.

“As long as (the fight is under the) rules of boxing,”

“I cannot fight (McGregor) in MMA. How can you fight a shark in the ocean? But if you fight the shark in dry land…”

Pacquiao faces Jessy Vargas on November 5 for the WBO welterweight title. Conor McGregor is being heavily linked to a lightweight title fight with Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 in New York. Will their paths ever cross in the boxing world? In the current climate of money fights, you can’t rule anything out.

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Nate Diaz: I’m The Only Man Who Can Beat Floyd Mayweather

Boxing great Floyd Mayweather has always done a top notch job of keeping himself in the media spotlight, and it seem he’s passing his knowledge on to the upcoming fighters in the game. But more recently his reach has spanned in to the world of mixed martial arts, at least in terms of headline time

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Boxing great Floyd Mayweather has always done a top notch job of keeping himself in the media spotlight, and it seem he’s passing his knowledge on to the upcoming fighters in the game. But more recently his reach has spanned in to the world of mixed martial arts, at least in terms of headline time and the rumour mill. It all started in December of last year when he and UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor shared a war of words around the subject of racism.

Fast forward to just after UFC 196, where ‘The Notorious’ was choked in to submission by Nate Diaz, and the subject surfaced yet again. This time it was in the aftermath of McGregor’s removal from the UFC 200 rematch with Diaz, as the Irish star had refused to attend a press conference for the event in California.

McGregor-Mayweather

Whether or not the fight will actually happen is debatable at best, and somewhat frustrating for fans that hope to see the featherweight division progress at the title end. The long and short of McGregor’ future is that a rematch with Nate Diaz is likely for UFC 202 or UFC 203. The outcome of that fight will do little to determine the future of the 145-pound category, as it’s probably going to be another welterweight tilt.

Nate

McGregor had a whole lot to say about Diaz in his most recent interview, even going as far to say that he had him ‘nearly done’ after ‘slapping his head off.’

Never one to sit quietly when this sort of banter is being thrown around, the younger o the infamous Diaz brothers fired a shot at McGregor, aiming right for the feels…

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Diaz also revealed he’s done an interview with Esquire with the followin retweet, so stay tuned:

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Is Jon Jones The Floyd Mayweather Of MMA?

Ex-UFC light-heavyweight champion Jon Jones has never really been out of the media since claiming the belt against Shogun Rua in 2012. His brazen attitude and antics outside the octagon have caused some trouble for the 28-year old in recent years, but even so his performances in combat speak for themselves. He’s undoubtedly the most

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Ex-UFC light-heavyweight champion Jon Jones has never really been out of the media since claiming the belt against Shogun Rua in 2012. His brazen attitude and antics outside the octagon have caused some trouble for the 28-year old in recent years, but even so his performances in combat speak for themselves. He’s undoubtedly the most dominant champion the division has seen, although he doesn’t have spotless record outside of fighting that say a poster boy like Georges St-Pierre does.

When you take a look closely at Jones’ behaviour, style, trolling, trash talking and dominance, he draws many similarities to one of the greatest boxers of the modern generation. So let’s take a punt at answering the question…

Is Jon Jones the Floyd Mayweather of MMA?

May 3, 2014; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Floyd Mayweather Jr. against Marcos Maidana (not pictured) during their fight at the MGM Grand. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
May 3, 2014; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Floyd Mayweather Jr. against Marcos Maidana (not pictured) during their fight at the MGM Grand. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Dominance

Boxing and mixed martial arts are two very closely connected, but entirely different sports. In terms of longevity, boxers will go on longer, but where they differ on the most part is when they start gaining recognition. For Floyd Mayweather, it was around the 35 fight mark, circa 2005 against Arturo Gatti, a fight which Mayweather won by retirement in round six. For a mixed martial artist though, 35 fights is a great career, and you’d be hard pressed to find any MMA fighter who is undefeated at the top level at this stage.

Needless to say, a ‘Money’ spent his early to mid-career, much like mixed martial artists do, fighting regional competition, but for the MMA fighter they have far less fights before reaching the elite level. If you look at the most recent half of each man’s fights, you’ll see many similarities, but perhaps the most staggering are the ratio of decision wins over current/former champions. The dominance with which each man has reigned over their respective competition is hard to deny, they simply can’t be touched, although each has experienced some squeaky wins too.

The style has a lot to do with it, as being untouchable doesn’t necessarily go hand-in-hand with entertainment. Both Jones and Mayweather have received criticism for having less than fan friendly styles. The truth is, as ling as they kept winning, the style is never really going to change. In his entire career, only Alexander Gustafsson has come close to defeating Jones, but with ‘Money’ you could argue that no one really came close. When you consider that Jones’ career, in size, could essentially only amount to half the boxing fights of Mayweather, the comparison in terms of dominance is blatantly obvious.

continue

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