Now un-retired boxing superstar Floyd Mayweather Jr. is pure confidence heading into his Saturday night showdown with UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor. He’s so confident, in fact, that he’s apparently considering making a massive, $5 million bet on himself.
BREAKING – Trusted Vegas Source:
Mayweather seriously considering betting $5 MILLION on himself to beat McGregor!— RJ Bell (@RJinVegas) August 22, 2017
“Mayweather seriously considering betting $5 Million on himself to beat McGregor,” said Las Vegas insider RJ Bell on Twitter Tuesday night.
Mayweather’s confidence, of course, is mirrored by that of his opponent McGregor, who is now predicting a first-round knockout win – which of course register as a massive, game-changing upset.
“I said [I’d win inside] four [rounds], but that’s me being humble,” the UFC champ recently told Conan O’Brien (h/t MMAFighting.com). “I don’t believe he will even exit the first round, but I’m trying to be humble on national TV. So I say four — inside four.”
When we last saw McGregor in the Octagon, he authored an artful knockout of Eddie Alvarez to win the UFC lightweight title. Given that he still owned the UFC featherweight title at that time, this made him the first fighter in promotional history to hold titles in two weight classes concurrently. This win was preceded by a hard-fought majority decision win over Nate Diaz. He is 21-3 as a pro mixed martial artist, and 0-0 as a pro boxer.
Mayweather, meanwhile, is a sparkling 49-0 as a pro boxer. After his last fight, a 2015 decision defeat of Andre Berto, the boxing legend elected to hang up the gloves. Yet this lucrative crossover fight with McGregor was apparently enough to pull him back to the ring.
Do you think Floyd Mayweather Jr. should make this bet on himself, or should he be satisfied with his massive $100 million + fight purse?
This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 8/23/2017.