A massive encounter has dominated headlines since Canelo Alvarez v Amir Khan fight week and looks to be growing closer by the day as both fighters continually add fuel to the fire.
Mayweather is clearly only interested in a paycheck by seeking out the ex-MMA champion for a cross codes battle as ‘Money’ stands to make at least $100 million from what looks on paper to be a massively one-sided boxing match.
The 39 year-old is planning to have McGregor fully licensed in Las Vegas as he bids to extend his 49-0 C.V to a record-breaking 50 wins and overhaul heavyweight great Rocky Marciano with a hollow victory that could ultimately end up denting his legacy.
A large portion of boxing fans have been uneasy regarding any potential fight since the rumours began to circulate, although Mayweather himself has been the orchestrator and is consistently testing the water to see if he can pull the fight off.
Showtime PPV are fully on board with the fight, whilst UFC boss Dana White wants some control over negotiations in order to release McGregor from his exclusive contract for one fight that would benefit his own franchise in the long term.
But would boxing fans buy into it? – Obviously, there would be some sort of backlash from the die hards – whilst Mayweather has such wide appeal that the pay-per-view numbers from both sides of the coin should allow him to easily clear the nine figures he desires.
It seems WBC welterweight champion Danny Garcia would be the unlucky one as he would miss out on a career-defining chance despite being the initial frontrunner as Mayweather bids for a half century triumph that is sure to leave a sour taste in the mouth.
Everything about this spectacle points to how much control Mayweather has over his own sport, especially in his hometown of Las Vegas.
Irishman McGregor would be the real winner here as he stands to pick up a huge purse in a completely no-lose situation that will only serve to cement his place as the number one draw in the Octagon.
At 27, McGregor’s meteoric rise continues to astound but giving a Mixed Martial Artist [no matter how good] any hope of victory against the best boxer in a generation reeks of exploitation by the master puppeteer in Mayweather.
The circus certainly is in town….
