Mayweather vs. McGregor, Aug. 26

You're forgetting the obvious difference between the Rock and McGregor: about 8 inches in height and over 100 pounds in weight.

The transition to Hollywood enforcer thing is a tougher sell for welterweights.

 

I dunno. How big was Bruce Lee? McGregor's a top-notch athlete and has the heavy's looks. If they could make Alan Ladd, about the size of Javier Castellano, a leading man, they can do anything.

 

And he's ... what ... like 5-8?

Plus, I'm not proposing McGregor as the guy who carries the movie. But he could be a supporting character - provided he can act.

 

The camera adds 10 pounds and two inches. McGregor would be great for Peaky Blinders.

Can he act? He convinced millions of people to bet down the fight odds from +950 to +300.

 

Oh there's no way he builds the kind of hype for any fight, boxing or MMA, that he did for this one. But there is a rabid McGregor fanbase that would pay to watch him do the dishes. Plus there are likely a good number of people who would pay to watch him fight again just to see how well he would do against a boxer that isn't the greatest of this generation, at least enough people to make for a nice payday. But if he were to lose that one too, any interest in a third would drop off a cliff.

 

I wouldn't go this far. He's won two belts but never defended either of them. There are plenty of contenders that would offer him a legitimate challenge, especially at lightweight should he return to MMA, like Tony Ferguson and Khabib Nurmagamedov. Plus, the Nate Diaz triology offers a challenge and probably his biggest MMA payday.

 

Shit, I'd take my $75m payday and go over the hill. Sure, he can go get kicked in the face in MMA for a while longer, but why? Go out on top with a few brain cells left to rub together, quit taking beatings, and live well for the rest of his life.

He won't. They never do. But he ought to.

 

No moral victories. Of course Mayweather massaged the pace for a while. That's what he's done in every major boxing match in his career. He takes a couple rounds to figure out the opponents tendencies and how he's going to counter them. He probably did a little less work in the first 2-3 rounds of this fight but that's because he wasn't concerned about McGregor's supposed power or anything else he had to offer.

As for McGregor's future. He might try to straddle the line again. I seriously doubt he'll try to mess with Canelo or GGG even though it would be big money because he'll likely get hurt very badly. Maybe he thinks he can get another 15-20M out of a fight with Paulie Malignaggi and it would be a another big Vegas betting day (McGregor might actually get even odds) and Paulie has never been known as a puncher with power so it's low risk.

In all likelihood I think he'll go back to UFC but I don't see him fighting the top contenders at 155 like Tony Ferguson or Khabib...he'll take a third fight with Nate Diaz and then try to angle for a fight with Georges St. Pierre. He's only going to want to fight guys that bring some mainstream interest to the table so if he loses there's even more money in the rematch.

 

I hate how true this is. I know they wouldn't draw as much PPV numbers, but I think Ferguson or Khabib would give McGregor a hell of a fight. And it would be nice if he, you know, actually defended his belt. The whole "two-weight champ" thing is kinda bullshit until he does.

 

St, Pierre, seriously? Guess if he beats Bisping, but St. Pierre probably doesn't make 170 anymore and McGregor is most likely not going to fight higher than that.

 

As the UFC proved this past weekend: if it will make them an assload of money, they will find a way.

 

But that was a boxing match/spectacle. Guess they can do it, but would think it may hurt the UFC. A big part of the UFC's popularity is Dana White is a dictator like Vince McMahon. Even though McGregor may get more leeway than the rest, Dana White still picks the matchups (and it's pretty much who deserves a shot at the title). In boxing there are too many belts so no one way organization has that much power. A Mayweather gets to call the shots, don't see Dana White wanting anyone in the UFC to get that popular/powerful.