By Keith Idec
Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Conor McGregor might fight in eight-ounce gloves after all.
Nevada State Athletic Commission executive director Bob Bennett told Sky Sports for a story posted to its website Wednesday that the NSAC will vote on the request for Mayweather and McGregor to fight with eight-ounce gloves at its next meeting, set for August 16 in Las Vegas. The 12-round boxing match between the boxing legend and the UFC superstar, scheduled for August 26 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, will be contested at the junior middleweight limit of 154 pounds, which usually requires boxers to wear 10-ounce gloves.
In accordance with Association of Boxing Commissions rules, fighters in any bout contested at the welterweight limit of 147 pounds and below are supposed to wear eight-ounce gloves. Boxers in fights contested above 147 pounds are supposed to wear 10-ounce gloves.
Bennett told Sky Sports that there are exceptions and that the NSAC will vote on the issue next week.
“Mayweather’s team has, and McGregor’s team [is] in the process [of submitting a request],” Bennett told Sky Sports. “It will be heard at the commission’s next meeting.”
McGregor (21-3, 18 KOs in MMA) has criticized the heavily favored Mayweather (49-0, 26 KOs) for demanding that they fight in 10-ounce gloves, which is considered a disadvantage for a powerful puncher like McGregor. Mayweather has since said he is willing to fight in eight-ounce gloves and his team filed a commensurate request with the NSAC on his behalf.
“They come before the commission [and] each party can discuss their reasoning,” Bennett explained. “The chairman and commissioners openly discuss the request and vote on it. Our regulations require 10-ounce gloves, but I won’t say that there’s no negotiations.
“The promoters have a legal opportunity to submit a waiver, then appear before our commission to articulate why they think we should make an exception to our regulations. This is an anomaly. I haven’t experienced this in over three years on the job. I checked with the previous executive director, Hall-of-Famer Marc Ratner, and our program officer, who has been here for 30 years. To the best of their recollection, we have never had a request like this.”
Ireland’s McGregor is used to fighting with tiny four-ounce gloves in mixed martial arts matches. He will participate in his first professional boxing match when he challenges Mayweather later this month.
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.