Five years ago, pound-for-pound legend Floyd Mayweather faced off against UFC icon Conor McGregor in a historic fight in which boxing met MMA.
Now, it looks the two of the high-profile sportsmen are set to meet again in 2023, but it’s yet to be decided if it’ll be as an exhibition or a professional bout. It’s hardly a small matter, given both the animosity between the pair and Mayweather’s history of being proud of his zero loss record.
Billed as ‘The Money Fight’, the original bout was estimated to have generated around $600m in revenue (ESPN), more than any other pay-per-view event in the history of the sport. With both fighters infamous for their respective love of earning, and having previously fought for ‘The Money Belt’, there is no secrets as to the incentive for Mayweather to make this fight happen.
In comparison, Irishman McGregor might have a different goal, as he looks to overcome the defeat he suffered in his professional boxing debut against 50-0 Mayweather.
The two-weight UFC champion has often spoke of his wishes to return to the boxing scene, especially after surviving ten rounds with one of the best of all-time. Furthermore, a broken leg in his last fight against Dustin Poirier could be enough to convince McGregor to make the switch to boxing and away from the brutal kicks of mixed martial arts.
Since receiving a reported $280 million from their encounter and retiring from the professional game, Floyd Mayweather has fought in a variety of exhibitions. ‘TBE’ has fought Tenshin Nasukawa, Logan Paul, Don Moore and, this Saturday, he will fight Mikuru Asakura in Japan.
Now the five-division world champion has his focus set back on McGregor, he revealed in an interview with Sportsmail.
“I want to go out there this weekend and have fun [against Mikuru Asakura]. Then I have another exhibition Dubai in November and me and Conor McGregor in 2023.”
“We don’t know if it’s going to be an exhibition or a real fight. But there’s been talks of both. I would prefer an exhibition.”
“I am not into fights where I am going to take any real punishment.”
Remembering the antics of the build-up last time around, it shouldn’t be long before McGregor responds to confirm or deny the plans.