History in the making folks, McGregor and UFC Dana White have confirmed it…
Since late 2015 we’ve been seeing Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor talk a lot of trash. When ‘The Notorious’ knocked out Jose Aldo in 13 seconds at UFC 194, he set in motion a chain of events that would lead him in many unexpected directions.
First scheduled to fight Rafael dos Anjos at lightweight, the Irishman would leap up to welterweight twice. After being submitted by Nate Diaz at UFC 196, McGregor returned to 170 at UFC 202.
From Lightweight to Boxing
Then it was UFC 205 in New York, a history making event. Not only for the venue, but because McGregor would become the first ever simultaneous two-weight champion. Knocking out Eddie Alvarez, ‘The Notorious’ would then take some time off, at least from fighting.
Ramping up the talk of the Mayweather fight to insane levels, the slick Irishman would stand defiant against the UFC. Left with little choice but to get on board, UFC president Dana White would take responsibility for brokering the deal.
That deal, finally, has been signed by McGregor. As per the man himself:
McGregor’s Statement
Speaking to The Mac Life, Conor McGregor gave a statement on the historic signing of the Mayweather contract:
“It is an honour to sign this record breaking deal alongside my partners Zuffa LLC, The Ultimate Fighting Championship and Paradigm Sports Management,” McGregor said.
“The first, and most important part of this historic contract has now officially been signed off on. Congratulations to all parties involved. We now await Al Haymon and his boxer’s signature in the coming days.”
UFC president Dana White also broke the news on TNT:
“McGregor / Mayweather… Is it happening? Is it a myth? What’s going on?” –@SHAQ asks @danawhite the question on everyone’s minds. #UFC pic.twitter.com/8v0gpngTdj
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) May 18, 2017
“The McGregor side is done,” White said on TNT following game one of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals. “I’m starting to work on the Mayweather side now.”
“I’m not saying the fight will happen but I got one side done and it’s time to work on the other,” White added.
It Is Happening
Now, with at least 50% of negotiations in the bag, many questions about the fight itself remain. Will Mayweather get the easiest payday of his career, or will McGregor shock the world yet again?
Also, with Genndy Golovkin now facing Canelo Alvarez in September, will the date for McGregor vs. Mayweather be further down the line than we’d originally thought it would?
