Boxing Star Floyd Mayweather Jr. Comments On UFC Rumors, Will He Become MMA Fighter?
There were swirling MMA rumors on Wednesday about boxing great Floyd Mayweather Jr. possibly taking his fighting career into the UFC’s Octagon. The rumors were started up a week ago due to comments that “Money” Mayweather made. Today, that speculation of him becoming an MMA fighter was given some strength when UFC president Dana White said there had been discussions about it actually happening. However, Mayweather would later clear up what he said last week to help people better understand where he was coming from and what might happen in the future.
Floyd Mayweather is retired from boxing right now, but that hasn’t stopped the rumors of a return bout, and now of a foray into mixed martial arts. As NESN‘s Logan Mullen reported, the boxing legend’s comments last week were about him being ready to step into the Octagon and participate in some fights if he wanted to. Since Mayweather is all about money, he mentioned he could easily generate a billion dollars over the course of a few fights if he chose to get involved. After the rumors started to pick up some momentum on Wednesday, Mayweather came out to deny he was planning an MMA career anytime soon.
Mayweather clarified what he had said before with regards to the potential for fighting in the UFC.
“Exactly what I said is this, if I made a billion dollars before, I could do it again. If I chose to get in the UFC and fight three fights or fight four fights and then fight Conor McGregor, I could make a billion dollars, which I can. I can do it in three fights or even four fights, I could make a billion dollars if I choose to get into the Octagon and fight.”
Mayweather went on to say he’s not sure what the future holds for him but that he isn’t thinking about getting back into a boxing ring at all. Right now, he seems to be enjoying his money since his retirement from the boxing ring. With an untarnished record of 50-0, he’s certainly got a legendary career which he can now look back upon. That is unlikely to change unless he pulls a comeback similar to other sports legends and tries to achieve more glory or more money.
Should that desire to make more money arise, one might think he would prefer making sports bets or business moves over taking damage inside the Octagon. After all, his MMA opponent in the boxing ring several months ago, Conor McGregor, may have held his own over 10 rounds, but boxing and mixed martial arts are two completely different sports. Still, it’s undeniable that Floyd Mayweather Jr. is great at making money in promotional environments and the UFC certainly thrives on that. Stay tuned, as there’s always that chance that he’ll get the itch to try something different for the sake of making money.
