Tag: Opinion

Nearly two years removed from his last boxing match and subsequent retirement, Floyd Mayweather Jr. looks like he’s in fine shape for Saturday’s megafight against Conor McGregor.

That is, unless you ask McGregor.

“That’s the worst shape I’ve ever seen him in,” McGregor said, per USA Today Sports’ Martin Rogers. “I am a professional. I make weight. I am in peak physical condition. Everyone can tell I am ready. I will be a lot bigger (than this), and a lot bigger than him. I see a man afraid.”

At 149.5 pounds, Mayweather did check in above his previous fighting weight of 147 pounds. But with a 154-pound limit for this super welterweight fight, he’s still well within the proper range. McGregor, by comparison, squeaked by at 153 pounds, and he figures to beef up much more than that once he’s rehydrated ahead of the fight.

Here’s a look at where Las Vegas, the host town for the bout, has the odds for the main event at T-Mobile Arena, courtesy of Oddsshark:

   

Mayweather vs. McGregor Odds

• Mayweather: 11-50
• McGregor: 13-4

  

Post-Weigh-In Preview

It would be easy to dismiss McGregor in this matchup, as many already have. After all, he’s never boxed professionally and has only recently begun training for the switch from mixed martial arts. He will be making his debut in the ring against Mayweather, who, if not one of the greatest pound-for-pound fighters ever, has at least been steeped in the sport his whole life, having been born into a boxing family.

McGregor does have some things going for him. To start, he’s not exactly new to fist fighting. He started as a boxer in his native Ireland at age 12 and made his mark in the UFC as a standout stand-up striker.

From a physical standpoint, McGregor might have the upper hand. The 29-year-old is more than a decade younger than the 40-year-old Mayweather, with superior size and reach (74 inches to Floyd’s 72) to boot.

As McGregor boasted to ESPN’s Dan Rafael:

If people are overlooking my size, power and youth, they shouldn’t be. I’m very confident in those attributes. I believe I’ll knock him out early. If you look at the way I fight, I am a fast starter. I come out and bang people right away. With eight-ounce gloves, I don’t see him lasting more than one or two rounds. I am my own man and I feel I am superior to Floyd. When it comes to Saturday night, he will not be prepared for me.

It’s possible that Mayweather’s age and extended break from the sport will leave him a step slower than usual. But even if that’s the case, he’ll still be light-years ahead of in terms of skill and technique.

Mayweather is arguably the finest defensive fighter that boxing has ever seen. He’s an expert at avoiding flush contact from flailing fists like those McGregor figures to send flying in his direction.

And he might be even better at jumping on the mistakes of those who swing and miss. While Mayweather hasn’t knocked out an opponent since Victor Ortiz in 2011, he’s still more than capable of making McGregor pay for leaving himself open to counters.

Mayweather, though, may have to watch out for MMA-style moves from McGregor. The Dublin native isn’t used to being restricted to using just his hands, and only in specific ways. According to Mayweather, McGregor employed some illegal tactics during a recent sparring session with former junior welterweight and welterweight champion Paul Malignaggi. As he told World Boxing News: 

I had a chance to see it. And my thought is that I think it was really interesting, but with a lot of rabbit punching; a lot of illegal rabbit punching behind the head. A lot of grappling, a lot of wrestling, a lot of illegal shots. That’s just my honest opinion. I’m pretty sure the referee is going to be fair on both sides. I just want a good solid fight.

McGregor will have to fight clean, lest he jeopardize his life-changing payday.

“There is a significant penalty,” Showtime Sports chief Stephen Espinoza told ESPN. “The details will remain confidential, but there is a significant penalty in the event of what could be described as an extreme foul, an out-of-the-ordinary foul of what your normal boxing foul would be.”

Either way, McGregor will be up against it as he looks to represent MMA against boxing with Mayweather in the opposite corner.

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There won’t be any official boxing titles up for grabs when Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Conor McGregor meet in the ring on Saturday. But that doesn’t mean there won’t be plenty on the line between these two titans of combat sports, even leaving aside the hundreds of millions of dollars that hang in the balance.

For Mayweather (49-0), it’s an opportunity to further burnish an already-impressive legacy in his sport. One more win would move him just ahead of Rocky Marciano (49-0) in the all-time ranks of undefeated pugilists. In a larger narrative, this win would also mark Mayweather as the man who proved that boxing still holds more sway in the sports world than does mixed martial arts.

On the flip side, a McGregor victory would bolster the standing of the UFC, both directly and by proxy, while potentially catapulting the 29-year-old Dublin native into a new, more lucrative career in boxing. And if we’re talking about narratives, what better story is there than a neophyte from the Octagon taking down one of the greatest and most skilled athletes to ever step between the ropes?

But those are all more cosmetic concerns to be settled on the final Saturday in August. Here’s a look at what we know for sure about this mega-fight, with odds culled from OddsShark.

          

Mayweather vs. McGregor

What: Fight for an enormous payday…and bragging rights

Where: T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada

When: Saturday, August 26

Time: 11:55 p.m. ET

National TV: Showtime PPV

Live Stream: Showtime PPV, UFC, Sling TV Rentals, PlayStation Store

Odds: Mayweather -450 (bet $450 to win $100), McGregor +325 (bet $100 to win $325)

                     

Undercard

Andrew Tabiti vs. Steve Cunningham, cruiserweight

Badou Jack vs. Nathan Cleverly, light heavyweight

Gervonta Davis vs. Francisco Fonseca, junior lightweight

          

A Case For McGregor

It’s easy to discount McGregor for his utter lack of experience, but his history as a fighter suggests this might not be a cakewalk for Mayweather.

For one, McGregor comes from a sport wherein the hits can be harder and the strategy more taxing, both physically and mentally. He won’t have to worry about dodging a roundhouse kick from or grappling on the ground with Mayweather, as he would if he were in the Octagon with Nate Diaz. Instead, he can focus solely on what essentially amounts to stand-up striking, which was McGregor’s MMA forte anyway.

Keep in mind, too, that McGregor’s only losses in UFC came by submission.

“McGregor is a tough competitor. He’s undefeated standing up. He’s never lost when striking. I know that I’m in for a tough fight,” Mayweather said, per ESPN’s Dan Rafael.

Nor is McGregor entering the ring without a discernible chin. He’s used to taking punches from thinly gloved fists and bare feet rather than blows from cushioned boxing gloves. That the Nevada State Athletic Commission also unanimously approved to allow this junior middleweight bout to proceed with eight-ounce gloves—rather than the standard of 10 ounces for fights contested at or above 147 pounds—could play into McGregor’s favor, however slightly.

More than anything, it’s the element of mystery that could afford McGregor an edge. As much as Mayweather can study (and probably has studied) his latest foe’s style in the UFC, he won’t know what to expect until the bell rings on Saturday. If McGregor can dupe and confuse his seasoned opponent just long enough to land a crushing blow or two, he may well pull off the upset of the century.

           

Floyd is Favored For a Reason

All that said, it’s no accident that Mayweather is such a heavy favorite heading into the bout. An untested (and potentially undisciplined) combatant like McGregor is perfect fodder for a fighter as patient and methodical as Floyd.

Mayweather, who might be the best defensive boxer who ever lived, will be an exceedingly difficult target for McGregor to hit. The former’s quickness is critical, but it’s the poisons he presents to a southpaw like McGregor that will make this a particularly dangerous chess match. If McGregor wants to hit Mayweather flush, he may have to lunge around with his left hand, leaving his face and chest exposed to Floyd’s blows.

And Mayweather, as an expert in his field, will know full well how to bait a newbie into just such a trap.

Even if McGregor doesn’t fall for it, he figures to have a difficult time landing enough punches to make headway on the judges’ scorecards. Both fighters have talked a big game about knocking out the other, but Mayweather hasn’t notched a KO since his controversial combination against Victor Ortiz in 2011 and McGregor…well, again, he’s never boxed professionally.

Should this battle last all 12 rounds, Mayweather has the clear edge. And if it doesn’t, it’ll probably be because Money ended it early.

       

Prediction

As much of a sure thing as this bout may seem for Mayweather, he’s not heading in without at least a modicum of risk. Here’s how Rafael summed it up:

“Mayweather is 40. Mayweather hasn’t fought in two years. And Mayweather, of Las Vegas, is gambling his perfect record and a brilliant Hall of Fame legacy that could be ruined with one punch from a guy who looks like he barely knows how to throw a proper boxing punch.”

To that end, the divide between Mayweather and McGregor here speaks to the essence of Sin City itself. If McGregor is the braggadocious tourist playing the slots, laying bets on the roulette wheel and tossing dice at the craps table, Mayweather is the casino itself. The tourist, with a tinge of skill and a hefty helping of luck, has an outside shot at a jackpot.

But in the end, the house always wins.

And in this case, that house (i.e. Mayweather) looks like he’ll win by knockout in the eighth round.

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Floyd Mayweather Jr. is doing his best to become the Michael Jordan of boxing. His titles in five different weight classes and unblemished career record (49-0) might already mark him as the greatest of all time in the sport. Now, like Jordan, he’s coming out of retirement a second time to take on an entirely new challenge—namely, taking down a mouthy MMA star who’s a veritable amateur in the ring.

Conor McGregor, though, has at least 100 million reasons to look forward to Saturday night, when he and Mayweather will face off a T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. At that point, the wily 29-year-old Irishman will have to put his money where his mouth is against the 40-year-old king of the ring.

There will be three fights on the undercard before the main event. First, Andrew Tabiti (14-0, 12 KOs) and Steve Cunningham (29-8-1, 13 KOs) will face off in a 10-round cruiserweight bout. Then, Badou Jack (21-1-2, 12 KOs) and Nathan Cleverly (30-3, 16 KOs) will duke it out for the vacant World Boxing Association light heavyweight belt. Finally, before Mayweather and McGregor walk out, Gervonta Davis (18-0, 17 KOs) will look to defend his lightweight title against Francisco Fonseca (19-0-1, 13 KOs).

Fight Time: Coverage on Showtime begins at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT, with Mayweather-McGregor starting approximately at 11:55 p.m. ET/8:55 p.m. PT.

       

Preview

On paper, this looks like a no-brainer.

McGregor, who went 21-3 in the Octagon, has never boxed professionally. Mayweather, who’s aiming to round out his record at a perfect 50-0, might be the best to ever put on gloves.

But don’t underestimate what McGregor brings to the table. For one, McGregor can run his mouth just as well as Mayweather can. It would appear that the former’s constant heckling of the latter, particularly on social media, might have played a part in drawing Mayweather back into the ring.

Between the ropes, McGregor has some physical advantages in this 154-pound fight. He’s an inch taller (at 5’9″) than Mayweather and has a reach that’s two inches longer (74″).

And while McGregor has never boxed properly as a pro, his native MMA style was never that far off. By and large, he was a stand-up striker in the UFC, fighting primarily out of a southpaw stance. Boxing was always his best skill in the Octagon, and most of his knockouts and technical knockouts came by way of punches.

That all jibes with McGregor‘s sporting roots, he started boxing back in Ireland when he was 12 and has referred to Muhammad Ali as one of his earliest inspirations.

Still, it’s difficult to envision how McGregor will make headway in this bout, outside of landing his signature pull-back left-handed counter. The newcomer is notoriously aggressive, but that approach could play right into his opponent’s hands. Mayweather might be the greatest defensive fighter who ever lived and will surely find ways to use McGregor‘s aggressiveness against him.

Not that anyone should expect a knockout on Mayweather’s account. He has 26 on his record but hasn’t taken down an opponent before the final bell since September 2011, when he KO’d Victor Ortiz. That came on a controversial combination that some saw as cheap shots.

It’s possible that McGregor, as a boxing neophyte, will be vulnerable to a similar slip-up and ensuing slugs from Mayweather. The better bet, though, is that this battle goes the distance, with Mayweather emerging as the unanimous victor on the scorecards.

Scorecard Prediction: Mayweather wins via unanimous decision, 116-112, 117-111, 118-110.  

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