Conor McGregor Proposal Revealed by Freddie Roach Amid Floyd Mayweather Rumours
Legendary boxing trainer Freddie Roach has revealed he has been approached to potentially coach UFC star Conor McGregor amid rumours of a showdown between he and Floyd Mayweather Jr.
McGregor himself stoked speculation about a potential crossover bout, sharing a mock-up fight poster on his Twitter feed. And while Roach revealed he’s heard no talk of a possible fight between the two illustrious competitors, he did admit the Irishman’s camp had enquired about some sessions.
"No [talk of Mayweather], just to train him," Roach told Radio Rahim of BoxingScene.com. "They did ask me if I'll train him. I said 'sure, bring him down.' I'd like to see [him], meet the guy and see what he has. He seems like a nice guy.”
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Here's more from Roach on the subject:
Asked whether he could possibly get McGregor in shape for a boxing bout with Mayweather, Roach conceded it’s doubtful. “No, I don't even know what level he's at right now,” he said, per Rahim. “I couldn't say that without working with him. He seems like a good kickboxer. That's all I've seen of him. But as a boxer, I've never seen him box.”
Of course, at this point any fight between the two is unlikely. That hasn’t stopped either man adding to the rumours.
Mayweather declined the chance to put an end to the whispers. “Keep your fingers crossed, it may be a boxer versus an MMA fighter,” he told FightHype.com. “It was a name that was shot at me. It may not be a rumour.”
There are other obstacles in the way of a possible fight. The one most cited has been the contract the UFC currently has McGregor locked into.
The Irishman could feasibly buy out the deal, although given his tense relationship with the company at the moment—he was jettisoned from the bill of UFC 200 after threatening to not fulfil media commitments—a potential breakaway from the contract could see the Notorious marginalised, regardless of his commercial worth.
However, while a lot of the MMA world have branded talk of this bout as nonsense, Brendan Schaub, a former UFC star, thinks UFC President Dana White could well agree to this going ahead, per the Fighter and The Kid Podcast (h/t Rory Kernaghan of Lowkick):
"You are looking at least at a $200 million pay day, and you are fighting a guy who is 147 pounds. Yeah, you’re not gonna touch [Mayweather], but just name someone, I’d fight ten of them for $200 million. I agree [McGregor] will get knocked out) but still, it wouldn’t ruin your career, it would f--k the argument for boxing vs. MMA and who’s better, but he could still go back to MMA and dominate. It would actually make him a bigger star.
Floyd would mess around, he wouldn’t go in there and knock him out straight away, it would be humiliating. The reason why this gets a little bit of hype is, I guarantee [White] would sign Conor out and let him do this fight. Listen, [McGregor] is a master of striking in the UFC, that being said, it’s not boxing, if he fought even a journey guy, he’s probably not gonna win.
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McGregor is considered by many to be the best natural striker in the UFC, something he showcased emphatically with knockout wins over Jose Aldo, Chad Mendes and his overall domination of the featherweight division.
The Irishman is superb at finding his range early in contests and when his left hand lands flush, there are few have shown they are able to recover. However, boxing is a totally different sport to MMA and while he’s been retired since last September, someone like Mayweather, rated as the greatest fighter of this generation, would be a class above.
However, even Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Snowden is formulating fantasy blueprints for how the MMA star could potentially pull this one off:
"If McGregor "boxes" Mayweather the way he "boxes" MMA fighters, he doesn't last three rounds. Depending on Floyd's intentions.
— Jonathan Snowden (@JESnowden) May 9, 2016"
"Template for McGregor vs Mayweather would be Maidana. But CM doesn't throw combinations at that level. I can't believe I'm talking about it
— Jonathan Snowden (@JESnowden) May 9, 2016"
Earlier this year McGregor was on the brink of becoming the first fighter in the UFC’s history to hold two belts from two weight divisions at the same time before Rafael Dos Anjos withdrew from UFC 196.
But even he would be aware of the fact going up against someone like Mayweather would be a step too far. While he's been dangling the carrot of this fantasy clash on social media, it’d be a massive surprise to see McGregor’s next bout anywhere other than inside a UFC Octagon.
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