How the world reacted to the Floyd Mayweather v Conor McGregor announcement
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It’s. On.
After months and months of back and forth hullabaloo, the mega-money fight that UFC president Dana White has dubbed “the biggest fight ever” has finally been announced.
In case you’ve been living under a rock, on the 26th August in Las Vegas, the UFC’s Conor McGregor will go head-to-head with Floyd Mayweather in a boxing match that will pit arguably the best fighters from both sports together.
Given the sporting backgrounds of both fighters - as well as the clash of personalities - it’s being hyped as one of the biggest fights of all time.
It has of course already produced some brilliant banter in the lead up to the announcement.
McGregor's latest post featured the quote, "the fight is on," with an image of him and Floyd Mayweather's father, Mayweather Senior (effectively taking a dig at his opponent's age).
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The sporting world was quick to celebrate that the fight has finally been confirmed and here are some of the best reactions to the momentous news.
1) “Because I’m happy”
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It’s all smiles from UFC president Dana White. He believes it’ll top the massive £4.6 million Mayweather v Pacquiao pay-per-view figures from 2015.
"It's definitely going to be the biggest fight ever in combat sports history and probably going to be the biggest pay day ever” said White. “All sides involved are pretty happy with their deals."
2) “I’m not surprised…”
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McGregor may be on the verge of embarking on a new boxing venture with a clean record, but there’s one loss from his days in the MMA that UFC lightweight Nate Diaz is not about to let him forget.
Diaz forced McGregor to submit during their fight at UFC 196 last March and his victory over the Irishman is the biggest blemish on the Irishman's otherwise untarnished UFC career, even though McGregor redeemed himself with a win over Diaz during their rematch six months later.
Both fighters had beaten each other once in the octagon but Diaz was never offered a third fight to settle the score with his bitter rival, so you can expect a lot more trolling from the American UFC fighter in the lead up to McGregor’s fight with Mayweather.
3) Trendsetting
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If one UFC fighter can fight a professional boxer, then why can’t another?
Enter UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic, who’s eager for a fight with boxing world champion Anthony Joshua on Mayweather and McGregor’s undercard.
Joshua already expressed his interest in fighting on the undercard when he met up with Mayweather in London, but whether that’ll be against a UFC fighter is highly unlikely.
4) Consider your thunder stolen
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It’s near impossible to stand a chance of topping the big-name match of the Mayweather v McGregor bout in August.
So you have to feel for Northern Irish boxer, Carl Frampton. No sooner had he revealed he'd be battling Andres Gutierrez in the ring, the other announcement came.
5) Stealing the spotlight
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John Kavanagh has been widely regarded as one of the key figures behind Conor McGregor’s success, and the no-nonsense coach took the fight announcement as an opportunity to take a dig at Floyd Mayweather, calling him “mentally challenged.”
6) “I aint Floyd and I landed”
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South African boxer Chris Van Heerden took the opportunity to publish a video of him landing punches during a sparring session with Conor McGregor.
It’s basically a one-minute compilation of Conor McGregor being hit in the face by a professional boxer. Ouch.
7) “At least the build up will be fun”
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If the lead up to the announcement has showed us anything, it’s that both fighters - arguably the loudest-mouthed in their respective sports - will give us a few laughs in the build up to the fight in August.
But former UFC fighter and commentator Dan Hardy isn’t convinced the fight will offer the same thrills and chills that fans are expecting, saying it will be “twelve rounds of defensive boxing.”
Sounds like Floyd Mayweather v Manny Pacquiao all over again. Sigh.
8) Everybody wants a piece of the action
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Being connected in any way to this event is guaranteed to skyrocket your profile, as UFC fighter Cub Swanson is well aware of.
9) McGregor is not returning to the UFC, or is he?
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British UFC welterweight Danny Roberts is convinced that with the ridiculous amount of money both fighters are set to earn – rumoured to be in the region of $100m (£78.4m) each – Conor McGregor will not be returning to the UFC after what is projected to be the biggest payday of his career.
MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani however tweeted that the August date was significantly set so that McGregor could face Mayweather and still have time to recuperate for a title defence of his UFC lightweight championship belt in December, as Dana White stated earlier to the press.
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Whether he fights in the octagon this year or not, McGregor’s bank balance is likely to be looking rather healthy.
