What’s the story?
Bob Arum is at it again! Arum, who served as a longtime boxing promoter for Floyd Mayweather Junior, claims, in an interview with TMZ Sports, that the Mayweather vs. McGregor super-fight will never happen. Watch the interview here:
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According to Arum, the very idea of Mayweather or McGregor, crossing over to another sport and fighting a reasonably good opponent, is dangerous. Arum went on to claim that the entire idea of this crossover mega-fight is preposterous.
He also accused Mayweather and McGregor of using this outrageous idea, in order to gain free publicity and, merely, promote themselves.
In case you didn’t know...
Floyd ‘Money’ Mayweather Jr (49-0 boxing) is considered to be one of the best pound-for-pound boxers of all time. He is undefeated as a professional boxer and is a former five-division World Champion in boxing.
His defensive skills are considered to be the best of all time. On the other hand, ‘The Notorious’ Conor McGregor (21-3 MMA) is a former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Featherweight (FW/145 pound) champion, and the current UFC Lightweight (LW/155 pound) champion of the world.
McGregor is also a former Irish amateur boxing champion. He is well-known for outsmarting his MMA opponents with his unorthodox stance and accurate boxing.
Bob Arum is one of the most controversial figures in boxing. Having been embroiled in several controversies in the world of professional boxing, he also made waves in the MMA community by questioning the legitimacy of MMA as a sport.
Arum is a longtime MMA critic and is known to jump at every opportunity he is afforded to downgrade MMA professionals and the sport.
The heart of the matter
Bob Arum has labelled the entire idea of Mayweather vs McGregor as ‘preposterous’. Here is what he had to say (courtesy: Metro.co.uk)
‘Conor McGregor is probably the leading mixed martial arts professional, that’s a different sport from the sport of boxing. If Floyd fought McGregor under MMA rules, he would get wiped out by McGregor. McGregor in the ring with Floyd Mayweather or any other reasonably good professional would get destroyed in a boxing match.’
Arum goes on to reveal that Mayweather and McGregor are simply using this as a way to keep their names in the news. Furthermore, he stated that even if McGregor really wanted this fight against Mayweather, since ‘Money’ would only agree to a fight inside the boxing ring, McGregor’s employers- the UFC; would never allow him to fight outside the UFC banner.
Besides, UFC President Dana White has already stated that McGregor is under contract with the UFC, and in no way, will he be allowed to take on any professional fight outside the UFC banner.
According to Arum, we, as fans, can enjoy this back and forth banter between Mayweather and McGregor, however, they are not getting into a boxing ring and fighting because the UFC would never allow it.
What’s next?
As of now, Floyd Mayweather has clearly stated that he won’t return to professional boxing, as a fighter, unless his opponent is Conor McGregor. He knows that a fight with the ‘Notorious’ one, coupled with his own star power is a sure box office hit and therefore, has stated multiple times that a fight with the outspoken Irishman is the only one that intrigues him.
On the other hand, McGregor will be inactive, if only for a few months, as an MMA fighter owing to his family obligations. He has taken time off from fighting to support his partner, Dee Devlin, as they are expecting their first child.
That brings us to Bob Arum. A large part of the MMA community loves to hate Arum, and deservedly so. Arum has, time and again, tried to discredit MMA and MMA professionals. His disrespect and disdain toward MMA is nothing new.
However, considering the fact that Arum is a longtime boxing promoter, who feels like MMA is taking away the spotlight from boxing, it comes as no surprise that he tries to downgrade MMA’s mainstream appeal. Regardless, of all his misgivings, he still continues to perform his duties, as a boxing promoter and businessman.
Sportskeeda’s take
Regardless of the Mayweather vs. McGregor fight taking place, facts will remain facts; any professional MMA fighter who steps into a professional boxing ring with a halfway-decent pro boxer will get schooled from bell to bell.
Similarly, any pro boxer who steps into the cage with a halfway-decent MMA fighter will get outclassed and humbled. If Mayweather vs. McGregor takes place under the Pro Boxing rule-set, look for Mayweather to outwork, and perhaps, stop McGregor halfway through the match.
On the contrary, if ‘Money’ vs ‘Notorious’ takes place under the Unified Rules of MMA, look for McGregor to beat up Mayweather and either submit him on the ground or dominate him at kicking range.
2016 was a crazy year for combat sports, and the way 2017 has started, it looks like there’s much more to come. Stay tuned in for more news on the Mayweather vs. McGregor mega-fight saga.
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