If the fight is really, really ugly and short, though…
Yeah, maybe a stand-up-only version of dirty boxing. Floyd gets to use a style he’s comfortable with and doesn’t have to worry about leg kicks or take-downs, but McGregor gains the advantage of being able to use spinning back fists and elbows to complement his limited boxing skills. And grabbing, holding & hitting would naturally be part of that repertoire. Now it’s a situation where we’re testing Mayweather’s historically good pure boxing ability against a fighter with all of the tools that can be used in a stand-up fight.
I agree that Mayweather would never agree to it, though.
He’s trash talking his former sparring partner now (in addition to predicting a KO)
I wonder if he’s starting to get inside Mayweather’s head a little.
Mayweather? Head?:dubious:
I would guess that most of what’s going on leading up to that fight -including trash-talking and everything else - is just about selling tickets and nothing else. You wouldn’t ordinarily expect Mayweather to be saying that he’s lost a step and that McGregor has the advantage, as he’s been doing, but I think Mayweather appreciates that he needs for people to think it’s a competitive fight in order to sell tickets, so he’s pushing that notion.
Similarly for what McGregor is doing on his end. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if all this back-and-forth with Malignaggi is just a scheme to add to the hype and keep the fight in the news.
Basically, you need to consider the money angle before taking anything connected with this fight too seriously.
Spot on.
Like most of us in this thread; we’ve all seen fights get promoted before. I don’t recall a time where I ever felt so much like is was all staged to a cheesy level. Don’t get me wrong; I always thing it’s hammed up little bit but it seemed real. I almost feel like these two guys are almost smirking at each other when they’re supposed to be ‘angry’. It’s been kind of off-putting.
Like virtually every other person in the world; I want McGregor to win; but it won’t likely happen. Mayweather is a skilled POINTS fighter. It’s too bad that we can’t revert back to one the old-school matches before they stopped fights at 10, 12 or 15 rounds. 
I think Mayweather would lose the fight went until someone went down for the 10 count.
Do you also have fun trying to explain to people that the betting line is only a set of numbers to keep the money payout from a bookie equal for both sides? Ideally bookmakers do not have an interest in any side winning an event. Instead, they are interested in getting equal betting on all outcomes of the event and collecting their vig.
The Gambler’s Creed: I hope I break even; I could use the money. 
Apparently they are failing at that in the case of this particular fight. It’s being reported that the bookies collectively stand to lose a fortune if McGregor wins.
I’m not versed in such matters, but it looks to me that - unlike in the case of horse racing - bets are set at whatever the odds are at the time the bet is made, and not on the final odds. So if the bookies gauge public sentiment incorrectly and set the initial odds too high or low, it’s hard for them to undo that (though they can change the odds going forward).
Unlikely. I think he’ll have little trouble causing substantially more damage than he accepts - enough that McGregor will not last to the end.
I’m not too familiar with gambling but on the rare occasions I have placed a bet the odds have always been fixed and these have always been horse races. The slip you get states the odds at the time of placing the bet and they can’t be changed.
Is there anywhere that does this differently?
A british bookie, paddy power, has paid out on Mayweather already. They have form for doing this sort of thing as a publicity stunt.
Personally I think Floyd will hold him up a bit, WWF-style, out of respect for the money. Whisper a few moves into his ear so they can put on a show.
maybe well get lucky the blowhards beat each other up so badly thell both retire and we can see real talent
Well as above, I’m not too familiar with this (and I’ve never bet on a horse in my life). But I’ve either read that or been told that at some point.
From Wikipedia, it looks like what I’m describing is known as Parimutuel betting.
Right. This is the outfit which paid out early on Hillary Clinton, and then had to pay out again on Trump.
I would tend to doubt it. Mayweather would be motivated to do this, because he came in for some criticism after the Pacquiao fight. But Mayweather is all about his perfect record, and I don’t think he would take chances. This is a guy whose most recent knockout came against a guy who was in the process of apologizing to him and was completely off guard.
Was this at a racetrack? In what country?
As Fotheringay-Phipps’ link notes, parimutuel betting is very common at horse racetracks (and for OTB). Your bet (if successful) entitles you to a share of the total amount paid out. But this is not a fixed amount - it depends on the amounts others have bet. The exact odds thus aren’t known until betting closes.
I can see a situation where McGregor becomes desperate and does a move or two that borders upon a disqualification. Im not saying it will be a deliberate act, but if he’s taking sustained punishment I can see a messy ending on the cards.
Assuming the fight goes any distance it will be interesting to see how often, if at all, either fighter falls to the floor from something other than a punch. If any boxing match is destined for a fighter to regularly fall to the floor off balance or get manhandled to the floor it is this one.
One thing I can almost guarantee in boxing; no-one has a freaking clue who gets inside someones head. There is virtually no correlation between anything said or predicted in the build-up to a fight and it’s outcome. I admire boxing and boxers. However, outside of the actual ring almost everything you see, read and hear about boxing is garbage. Boxing is on level with wrestling how much unadulterated bullshit that comes along with the sport.
It’s more fun to just win money.
A lottery ticket is a better bet than putting $1 down on McGregor but he still has that wild chance to win. I was shocked when Rhonda Rousey lost. When Tyson lost to Douglas I thought Douglas had a better chance than McGregor does but it was still hard to believe. Shit happens. If Mayweather wins, barely an if but who knows, then it’s over and there’s nothing to talk about because of course a guy in his first boxing match isn’t going to beat an undefeated champion, even 2 years into retirement. But if McGregor wins then at least there’s something to talk about and they can ice skate in hell.
I think it would be a stunning upset for the ages if McGregor wins, but I would never say that it can’t happen. All it takes to end a fight is one powerful shot to the head and we all know that McGregor has the power and the accuracy to deliver that kind of punch. I could actually see it happening early in the fight, when Mayweather is still trying to probe McGregor to see what he’s up against exactly. Maybe Mayweather gets too close and underestimates McGregor’s quickness. Mayweather could make a mistake, but I seriously doubts he keeps making the same mistakes again and again unless he just gets ridiculously cocky, which I suppose is the other way that he could lose this fight.
But once those first few rounds are out of the way, this is where I start to worry about McGregor’s safety a little bit. Boxing in many ways is more dangerous than MMA. Boxers sustain repeated punches to the head. Numerous people have died in the ring - fighters fighting at the elite level have been killed. A boxing ring is not an octagon. It doesn’t allow for freer movement; it’s smaller and more confining. There are ropes to balance yourself up against. There are corners to escape from. It might seem easy in a sparring session, but in a real fight, going up against one of the best fighters ever to have stepped into a ring, raining combinations on your head and body, it might be something that McGregor has a hard time dealing with. For an MMA fighter who’s not used to it, it could be as scary to face that as it would be for a pro boxer who’s trying to escape from a Randy Couture or Royce Gracie full mount.
I’m not watching the fight - don’t know whether to say fortunately or unfortunately. I’d like to see it but these days being on the east coast is brutal for sports fans with stuff to do in the morning. I won’t even consider buying PPV; I’d only consider going to a bar to watch it but I wouldn’t get home until well past midnight. Not worth it. If I thought McGregor were really skilled at boxing and had a real shot, I might. A slightly younger, slimmer Nate Diaz against a Pacquiao or Mayweather? I might watch that. MMA is still a huge dog in a boxing match but there are some fights where I’d at least like to see if it goes past 5 rounds.