By Keith Idec
Floyd Mayweather Jr. literally laughed Friday at Dana White’s financial offer for a much-discussed showdown with Conor McGregor.
When told by a TMZ.com cameraman of White’s $50 million offer – $25 million for Mayweather, $25 million for McGregor – the undefeated five-division champion reacted as you might expect.
“Ha! He’s a f***ing comedian,” Mayweather said. When asked to elaborate on his response, Mayweather repeated, “He’s a f***ing comedian.”
The retired superstar then began bragging about his watch, before instructing his driver to pull away.
White, UFC’s president, said told FS1 host Colin Cowherd during an episode of “The Herd” on Friday that his official offer of $50 million doesn’t include splits of pay-per-view and other revenue, which would generate millions more in income for both fighters if Mayweather and McGregor were to meet in a boxing match. White would have to agree to let McGregor box Mayweather because McGregor has an exclusive to fight for UFC, the world’s dominant mixed martial arts organization.
Mayweather said during an ESPN interview earlier this week that he made about $300 million for his May 2015 fight against Manny Pacquiao and that he earned roughly $800 million during his 19-year pro career. He has said he would have to make a nine-figure purse to fight McGregor, the UFC superstar Mayweather offered a $15 million guarantee for a boxing match in which even a 40-year-old version of Mayweather would be heavily favored.
Mayweather (49-0, 26 KOs) hasn’t boxed since dominating Andre Berto over 12 rounds in their September 2015 fight in Las Vegas. He also said this week that he is “90, 95-percent” sure he won’t come out of retirement, yet didn’t specify if that five or 10 percent is reserved for fighting McGregor or an actual boxer.
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.
