UFC president Dana White to back Conor McGregor’s potential rematch with Floyd Mayweather despite shutting down Kamaru Usman vs. Canelo Alvarez and Francis Ngannou vs. Tyson Fury
UFC president Dana White has made it clear that he is not a big fan of crossover fights but his tune changes when it comes to Conor McGregor.
The UFC boss fully backed ‘Notorious’ Conor McGregor when he made his boxing debut against Mayweather in 2017, suffering a tenth-round TKO defeat.
Despite falling to a loss in the fight, the event was a huge success for White, McGregor, and everyone involved, as it sold 4.3million pay-per-views and both fighters walked away with nine-figure paydays.
According to FightHype, the boxing YouTube channel with by far the closest relationship to Mayweather’s team, there are currently talks for a potential rematch between the two combat sports superstars.
FightHype claimed: “Sources close to the information have informed us that Hall of Fame legend Floyd Mayweather and UFC star Conor McGregor are currently in talks for a potential rematch.”
There has been no confirmation from either side yet, but McGregor fed into the rumours on Thursday when he posted a photo from their first fight alongside the caption: ‘I accept.’
Five years on from ‘The Money Fight’ crossover bouts have become more prominent than ever and many of the UFC’s biggest stars are keen to follow in the footsteps of McGregor by trying their luck in the boxing ring.
It’s become a huge headache for White, who has had to shut down talk of a boxing match between his welterweight champion Kamaru Usman and the undisputed super-middleweight king, Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez.
On top of that, UFC heavyweight titleholder Francis Ngannou is currently threatening to walk away from the promotion unless they support his desire to box the likes of Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua, and Deontay Wilder.
UFC legend Nate Diaz has also been kicking up a fuss as he is keen to take the final fight on his current contract, in order to explore the lucrative free agency market that could include a fight with YouTuber-turned-boxer, Jake Paul.
In May, the UFC president expressed his frustration with the amount of crossover fight talk and explained why Mayweather vs. McGregor was different.
“I don’t love the crossover fights. I don’t love ’em.” ‘Cause they’re f****** stupid. F***** waste of time, energy, and money. It’s silly, but I get it,” White said on The Pat McAfee Show
“The thing was the Floyd-Conor fight took on a life of its own. I mean, everywhere I went that’s all people were asking me about.
“It got to a point where fans wanted to see that fight and the media wanted to see that fight, and you know me. People aren’t knocking our door down for this fight.”
Despite his clear dislike of crossover bouts, White has always remained in contact with Mayweather’s team about a potential rematch with his biggest star.
In 2020, McGregor temporarily walked away from fighting and the UFC boss tried to lure him out of retirement with talk of a second lucrative boxing bout with Mayweather.
“Floyd and I still have dialog and go back and forth. We’re still interested, on both sides. I know he would rematch Conor McGregor. But I don’t know if you’ve heard, but Conor McGregor is retired,” White told TMZ Sport.
The 52-year-old is yet to comment publicly on rumours of an upcoming rematch between Mayweather and McGregor, but he is expected to be much more supportive of the crossover concept when he does.
It’s currently unclear when a rematch between the two sports stars will take place but it seems a December date could work for both men.
Mayweather is booked to face Japanese MMA fighter Mikuru Asakura in September in his fourth exhibition bout since retiring in 2017.
The 50-0 boxer previously squared off against kickboxing sensation Tenshin Nasukawa, YouTuber Logan Paul, and his former sparring partner Don Moore.
McGregor is currently healing up after suffering a fractured tibia and fibula at UFC 264 in July 2021.
The 33-year-old is closing in on a return to action and has recently begun kicking again ahead of his eagerly anticipated comeback fight which is expected to take place later this year.