Mac Attack: Will McGregor be Back?
Irishmman Could Return to Boxing or UFC, but When?
Even if he hasn’t fought in over two years in the UFC and nearly six years in boxing, Conor McGregor remains a superstar. After all, the Irishman knows how to keep himself relevant whether it is through smack-talking UFC fighters and boxers or making unsavory boxing news with scandals. Even on the sidelines, there is a slight chance we see McGregor lace up the gloves again.
McGregor vs Mayweather 2?
Should McGregor return to boxing, it will be another blockbuster event. The naysayers can point to him being “washed up.” But a bout between McGregor and another big-name boxer will likely generate millions of pay-per-view buys. The name linked to McGregor, and one available for betting online, is Floyd Mayweather Jr.
The pair fought in 2017 and made hundreds of millions in what became boxing’s second-highest selling event. Of course, there is plenty of money on the table for both boxers and their promoters. Mayweather already discussed the possibility of making the rematch happen some time in 2023.
It may seem improbable now because McGregor is scheduled to fight Michael Chandler in the UFC. But this fight has not been made official so it’s possible McGregor swerves and instead pursues a rematch with Mayweather.
Las Vegas’ boxing odds peg Mayweather as the -700 favorite to win this proposed bout with the comeback on McGregor at +450. This is a bit tighter than what their initial odds were in 2017 when Mayweather opened as a -2000 favorite with McGregor at 10-1.
Mayweather is 46 and has not boxed in a non-amateur bout since that first bout with McGregor. He’s kept himself active by boxing B-list celebrities and YouTubers in exhibition matches. He’s also set to box John Gotti III – that Gotti next week on June 11.
So if a Mayweather-McGregor rematch does indeed happen, the logical boxing prediction is for it to happen toward year’s end or in 2024.
McGregor Defeats Pacquiao … Outside the Ring
Mayweather is not the only boxing legend McGregor has stepped up to face. In fact, the 34-year-old McGregor, by way of his management team, Paradigm Sports, recently won a lawsuit against Manny Pacquiao. The company sued Pacquiao and won $5.1 million along with an extra $2 million in legal fees.
The eight-division world champion supposedly breached contract when he did not follow through on a bout against Mikey Garcia, another boxer managed by Paradigm Sports. Pacquiao instead signed on to box Errol Spence Jr. in 2021, which of course fell through when Spence got injured.
Pacquiao is willing to fight McGregor under specific terms. pic.twitter.com/t2SWOptGG7
— ESPN Ringside (@ESPNRingside) October 2, 2020
From Pacquiao’s end, he and his team claimed they only signed with Paradigm Sports because of a promised “superfight” with McGregor.
Even with the lawsuit, the beef here isn’t directly between McGregor and Pacquiao. But given what just happened, it’s highly unlikely that either will pursue a bout against each other.
Most boxing picks had Pacquiao beating McGregor as a -2000 favorite, similar to Mayweather’s opening odds in 2017.
BKFC is Interesting But Unlikely
If it’s not the squared circle, it’ll be the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship’s circle for McGregor. The former two-division UFC champion confronted Mike Perry following his victory over fellow UFC alum Luke Rockhold. Of course, McGregor said it would be “okay” with Dana White and the UFC if he fought in the BKFC, but most fans did not believe that.
Still, the sportsbook released odds on this hypothetical bout. McGregor is the slight favorite at -165 while Perry is the +120 underdog. But Perry would be a dangerous underdog here, such as when he cashed as one when fighting Bellator’s Michael “Venom” Page.
Still, it would be hard to envision White simply allowing McGregor to pursue a fight in the BKFC. While McGregor is still a cash cow for the UFC, he has not held the same sway with White. It’s also hard to see how the revenue generated here would be more than what a “superfight” in boxing would.
So while interesting, a McGregor-Perry bout in the BKFC is a fantasy at best.
