Floyd Mayweather has announced his first fight on British shores – although fans of the all time great will have to make do with an exhibition.
‘Money’ Mayweather has made this style of sports entertainment his home following a 50-0 career in which he won 15 major world championship titles in multiple weight classes.
Since officially hanging up the gloves in 2017, the American has travelled the world to lace up against YouTubers and MMA stars on the ‘Money’ road show – earning an eye-watering amount without breaking a sweat.
The most recent golden ticket was held by UK YouTuber, Deji, who was stopped by Mayweather in their bout following a chaotic fight week in Dubai. Mayweather, to his credit, stayed out of the drama – he is 45 years old after all.
At the beginning of the year, Mayweather teased a UK exhibition bout as early as February, and he has now come good on that promise.
“London. February 25th. It’s official. My first exhibition fight in the UK will be at the O2 Arena. Tickets go on sale next week.”
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The man in the other corner will be Liam ‘The Hitman’ Harrison – a Muay Thai competitor fighting out of Leeds.
Harrison’s kickboxing record stands at an impressive 117 fights with 90 wins, 50 coming by stoppage. He’s credited for bringing a lot of attention to the sport in England, and is an 8 time world champion.
London’s O2 has been a favourite of fighters in recent years, and it will be interesting to see how much of a dent one of the best fighters of all time can make in its 20,000 capacity.
Interestingly, the bout’s date clashes with a potential Jake Paul versus Tommy Fury fight in Saudi Arabia. Although not officially announced, there are strong reports that the pair will face off after two failed attempts at doing so.
Paul and Mayweather have had previous. The former boxer fought Jake’s brother Logan in June of 2021, but much of the build up was focused on his beef with Jake.
It seems they’ll be going head to head again – at least in terms of broadcast viewership. It’ll up to fans which spectacle they fancy of a Saturday, if any.