It has been a great year for boxing in 2017 and I say that despite the presence of the Floyd Mayweather Jr versus Connor McGregor match-up in August.
All parties involved made no shame in saying that the “fight” was a money grab, and in that, it was incredibly successful. It was such a success that Mayweather Jr.’s name has been linked to future fights despite his “last fight” talk before the McGregor clash.
From a purely boxing perspective, Mayweather scared none of the current crop of top welterweights. From Terence Crawford to Errol Spence Jr to Keith Thurman the elite welters saw a diminished fighter that would be easy pickings for them. The fight proved Mayweather was no longer a real player in the boxing ring. Though all have stated they would take the fight, no one was actively looking to fight Mayweather Jr after the August spectacle.The message seemed to be “you have your money Floyd, move on.”
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Now we have to deal with the preposterous talk of Mayweather crossing over to the UFC. For Mayweather to actually participate in competition, a lot of conditions have to go his way. Subtly there are feelers and ideas being bandied about as Floyd looks for another nine figure payday. The fight would be in Vegas, check. The crossover to the octagon would assure a lot of eyes on Mayweather but the opponent would have to bring something to the table as well. He can’t fight McGregor or Georges St. Pierre or anyone with any real Octagon experience.
Long forgotten on the UFC roster is Phil Brooks, aka CM Punk. In many ways, the guy actually fits the bill for a Mayweather opponent. He is 0-1 in the octagon and he signed with the UFC in his late thirties after a lot of success as a pro wrestler. Now, if you ask yourself if Mayweather Jr. could beat a former pro wrestler who is 0-1 in the UFC in an MMA match, would you answer “yes?” Many would. UFC President Dana White has been caught on record stating that he might take his promotion into the realm of boxing. That might entail Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos or Holly Holm returning to boxing to face Cecilia Braekhus.
That is what comes of the success of Mayweather and McGregor. We may get a lot more spectacles in the years to come as long as people keep buying.
