Conor McGregor vs. Floyd Mayweather is officially in the books, with Mayweather winning via TKO in the 10th round. As his record improved to 50-0, he claimed retirement for the third time in his career, while McGregor’s professional boxing debut ended in an L. Though Mayweather’s victory wasn't surprising to most, the entertainment aspect of the bout certainly was, as this fight was far more appealing to the casual fan than his last two fights against Berto and Pacquiao.
The fight was a spectacle, from the very first conferences to the entrances. McGregor did not look like the rookie he was touted to be, as he held his own in the first three rounds. As the rounds went by, McGregor appeared clearly fatigued, and although Mayweather has a reputation for “hugging” his opponents, McGregor did his fair share of it as well. I don't know if he was trying to stop momentum or catch his breath, but at that point, the whole “dance for me boy” became a “dance with me” moment.
Now, of course, there was some controversy, as there seemingly always is in these hyped fight results. In the judges score cards for the first three rounds, two of the three judges gave Mayweather two of the first three rounds, which is strange considering he didn't really do anything. In addition, when McGregor lost, the ref stopped the fight after he was consistently getting hit in the 10th round with little defense on his part. According to McGregor, he felt the referee was fair but felt he should have been allowed to continue at least until he was pit in the corner.
In the end, both parties left pleased as their bank accounts were certainly well fed as a result of the bout. McGregor reportedly may make $100 million after the fight and Mayweather is most likely going to become the third athlete to garner over $1 billion dollars in career winnings (after Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan). As an extremely casual boxing fan, I felt this brought a good amount of temporary hype into the boxing world, as it only seems to gain any relevance in sporting news when Mayweather is involved.
Now that he’s seemingly retired for good, this may open the door for McGregor to be on the A-side of winnings, as he held his own and proved he can at least last in the boxing ring with someone considered to be one of the greatest boxers ever. Perhaps, people will want to take him on as they know they’ll get paid a lot more handsomely than if they faced anyone else (except Manny Pacquiao). In addition, it helps legitimize UFC fighters as well. McGregor’s performance shows how fighters can adapt, while ultimately showing how he specifically, can put on a good show anywhere. This even further hypes his next title defense upon his return to the octagon.
All in all, everyone won. The fighters got paid handsomely, the fight game looked entertaining, and the fans were not put to sleep. Also, neither of their reputations were really hindered as fighters. The memes will be created joking about the fighters, but at the end of the day, it only keeps them in the limelight.
