Reporting from LAS VEGAS — Because Conor McGregor’s stand-up fighting was so impressive while capturing an unprecedented second simultaneously worn UFC belt last weekend, a mythical fight against Floyd Mayweather Jr. became extended fodder for television debaters this week.
UFC President Dana White, in a conversation with The Times this week inside his office, said he doesn’t know if such a fight could ever be negotiated and staged, but he did want to draw distinctions between the pair.
“Floyd plays the game in the sport of boxing where he can do his defense, pitter-patter, hide and run, play all his games,” White said. “He doesn’t touch people and drop them. Ninety-eight percent of his fights have been absolutely boring. If you love the pure defense of boxing, you can appreciate what he does, but as a fighter, Floyd isn’t a fighter. He’s not a guy who captures the imagination of fight fans all over the world. A Floyd Mayweather fight will put people to sleep.
“Conor McGregor puts people to sleep with his hands and people who are watching go crazy. Floyd Mayweather says, ‘Don’t compare me to Conor McGregor.’ …
“You’re ... right! Don’t compare Conor McGregor to Floyd Mayweather. Because they’re not even in the same class when it comes to entertainment, fighting and what they’re able to do to opponents.”
White said he expects McGregor to be on the shelf until the fighter’s girlfriend, Dee Devlin, gives birth to their first child with a due date in May.
He also said he “hates the conversation” about a potential McGregor-Mayweather fight that was revisited following McGregor’s five-knockdown, second-round knockout victory of former lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez.
The bout not only generated a fighting-record $17.7 million live gate at historic Madison Square Garden, it pulled McGregor, 28, within reach of matching the calendar-year record 4.9 million pay-per-view buys that Mayweather amassed at age 38 in 2015.
Mayweather, who’ll turn 40 in February after retiring in September 2015, told reporters Wednesday in New York that he’ll never fight again, and he sent away a reporter who asked about the potential of fighting McGregor.
But there are important people on both sides of the fight game who would like to make the novelty event, and White said Mayweather friend 50 Cent told him that Mayweather has confided to close friends that he’s interested.
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Floyd Mayweather Jr. celebrates after defeating Manny Pacquiao for the WBC welterweight championship at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on May 2, 2015. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
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Floyd Mayweather Jr. lands a punch in the eighth round against Manny Pacquiao during their welterweight title fight on May 2, 2015. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
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Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao trade blows during their welterweight title fight on May 2, 2015. (John Locher / Associated Press)
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Floyd Mayweather Jr. enjoys the moment after beating Manny Pacquiao. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
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Manny Pacquiao salutes the crowd after fighting 12 rounds with Floyd Mayweather on Saturday night. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
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Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao talk in the ring Saturday following their “Fight of the Century.” (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
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Floyd Mayweather Jr. enjoys himself after his win over Manny Pacquiao on Saturday night. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
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Floyd Mayweather Jr. holds up the belt after defeating Manny Pacquiao for the WBC welterweight championship Saturday at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
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Floyd Mayweather Jr. retained his welterweight title by defeating Manny Pacquiao by unanimous decision. (Al Bello / Getty Images)
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Floyd Mayweather Jr. with his belt. (Al Bello / Getty Images)
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Floyd Mayweather Jr. celebrates after beating Manny Pacquiao by unanimous decision. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
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Floyd Mayweather Jr. connects with a body shot to the ribs of Manny Pacquiao in the 11th round. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
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Floyd Mayweather lands a punch during the sixth round against Manny Pacquiao. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
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Manny Pacquiao gets Floyd Mayweather Jr. in the corner during the 10th round. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
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Floyd Mayweather Jr., right, trades blows with Manny Pacquiao. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
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Floyd Mayweather Jr. connects with an 11th round punch on Manny Pacquiao. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
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Manny Pacquiao lands a punch during the sixth round against Floyd Mayweather Jr. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
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Manny Pacquiao fires away at Floyd Mayweather Jr. during the third round. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
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FLoyd Mayweather lands a punch against Manny Pacquaio during their 2015 bout in Las Vegas. Promoter Bob Arum says Pacquiao will finish his career with four fights this year, none of them against the retired Mayweather. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
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FLoyd Mayweather Jr. lands a punch to Manny Pacquaio in the fourth round Saturday in Las Vegas. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
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The crowd watches the fight at MGM Grand. (Eric Jamison / Associated Press)
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Floyd Mayweather lands a right against Manny Pacquiao in their May 2, 2015, fight. (Isaac Brekken / Associated Press)
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Pacquiao takes aim. (John Locher / Associated Press)
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Mayweather in his corner. (Al Bello / Getty Images)
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Close-range fighting. (Isaac Brekken / Associated Press)
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Pacquiao ducks to avoid a Mayweather left. (FREDERIC J. BROWN / AFP/Getty Images)
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Mayweather ducks. (Al Bello / Getty Images)
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Pacquiao punches Mayweather near the ropes. (Eric Jamison / Associated Press)
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The fighters get more aggressive. (John Locher / Associated Press)
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Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao trade blows. (John Locher / Associated Press)
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Manny Pacquiao in his corner. (John Locher / Associated Press)
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The fighters in the ring in Round 1. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
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Floyd Mayweather Jr. throws a punch in the first round. (Al Bello / Getty Images)
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Manny Pacquiao throws a punch in the first round. (FREDERIC J. BROWN / AFP/Getty Images)
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Manny Pacquiao walks toward the ring. (Al Bello / Getty Images)
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Floyd Mayweather Jr. in the ring before the fight. (Al Bello / Getty Images)
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Manny Pacquiao fans gather in L.A.’s Filipinotown. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
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Jamie Foxx sings the national anthem. (FREDERIC J. BROWN / AFP/Getty Images)
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Leo Santa Cruz celebrates his majority decision over Jose Cayetano in a featherweight bout Saturday at MGM Grand Garden Arena. (Al Bello / Getty Images)
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Leo Santa Cruz, right, throws a right at Jose Cayetano during their featherweight bout Saturday in Las Vegas. (Harry How / Getty Images)
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Leo Santa Cruz, right, defeated Jose Cayetano by unanimous decision in a 10-round featherweight fight in Las Vegas in May. (Al Bello / Getty Images)
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Leo Santa Cruz, right, throws a right at Jose Cayetano during their featherweight bout Saturday in Las Vegas. (Al Bello / Getty Images)
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Leo Santa Cruz, left, punches Jose Cayetano during their featherweight fight at MGM Grand in Las Vegas on May 2, 2015. (Eric Jamison / Associated Press)
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Leo Santa Cruz, right, punches Jose Cayetano during their featherweight fight at MGM Grand in Las Vegas on May 2, 2015. (Eric Jamison / Associated Press)
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Jose Cayetano, right, of Mexico, lands a right to the body of Leo Santa Cruz during their featherweight fight at MGM Grand in Las Vegas on May 2, 2015. (Isaac Brekken / Associated Press)
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Leo Santa Cruz, right, trades blows with Jose Cayetano during their featherweight bout at MGM Grand in Las Vegas on May 2, 2015. (John Locher / Associated Press)
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New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady talks with Leslie Moonves and Julie Chen before the welterweight unification championship bout between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao on Saturday night. (Harry How / Getty Images)
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Ring girls practice their routine before the first fight of the Mayweather-Pacquiao card on Saturday at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. (Kevin Baxter / Los Angeles Times)
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Boxing fans pose for a photo in front of a Mayweather-Pacquiao poster on Saturday in the lobby of the MGM Grand. (Kevin Baxter / Los Angeles Times)
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Brad Solomon celebrates after beating Adrian R. Granado in a super-middleweight fight, which was the first on the Mayweather-Pacquiao undercard Saturday at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
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Vasyl Lomachenko lands a right to the face of Gamalier Rodriguez during their featherweight title fight on Saturday night at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. (John Locher / Associated Press)
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Vasyl Lomachenko tries to slip a punch by Gamalier Rodriguez during their featherweight title fight in Las Vegas. (John Locher / Associated Press)
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Gamalier Rodriguez gets a standing eight count from referee Robert Byrd after being knocked down by Vasyl Lomachenko during their featherweight title fight Saturday. (John Locher / Associated Press)
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Vasyl Lomachenko celebrates his ninth-round knockout victory over Gamalier Rodriguez in their featherweight title fight at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. (Eric Jamison / Associated Press)
While it’d be ideal for Mayweather (49-0) to fight McGregor in a regulation boxing ring, White says since he has McGregor under contract, “I’m the promoter,” and suggested a meeting in the octagon that would include the use of knees, kicks and elbows.
One possible compromise would be a boxing match inside a UFC octagon with 4-ounce gloves, a scenario that virtually every boxing expert says heavily favors Mayweather. The gambling website, Bovada, on Friday listed McGregor as a 10/1 underdog.
White countered that those experts aren’t factoring McGregor’s punching length from a left-handed stance, his supreme confidence and mind-bending swagger.
Within the past year, McGregor knocked out featherweight champion Jose Aldo in 13 seconds to end his 10-year unbeaten streak, he avenged a welterweight loss to former title challenger Nate Diaz at welterweight and then took Alvarez’s belt in an emphatic showing.
“What he did is – nobody ever wants to compare anybody to Muhammad Ali, because Ali is such a massive icon – but when you look at Conor, his mental warfare game is second to none,” White said.
“He’s so sharp and quick-witted that when you ask him a question, everything that comes out of his mouth is genius.
“Ali didn’t touch people and dropped them to the floor – just the way that Conor McGregor does. And when he touches you, no matter what weight class, you either get hurt or go to sleep. He finishes people in the manner and round he says he will. Guys who watch it look around and say, ‘What?’ When he said he was going to drop Jose Aldo in the first round, I said, ‘He’s completely over-selling himself.’ Doing it … wow! This kid is special. You have to respect what he’s been able to do.”
McGregor’s rise has produced four of the five top-selling pay-per-views in UFC history since December.
For White, that’s another contrast that should be drawn, considering the backlash boxing has been subjected to following Mayweather’s yawner over Manny Pacquiao last year in the richest one-day sporting event in history.
“Conor McGregor’s a huge part about building his sport,” White said. “Floyd Mayweather is not. He’s one of its killers.”
