By Keith Idec
Conor McGregor claims the real reason Floyd Mayweather Jr. was so willing to fight him at 154 pounds is because Mayweather wants to fight with bigger gloves.
Mayweather still can make 147 pounds, the welterweight limit at which he competed in each of his final four fights before he retired for the second time in September 2015. But in accordance with Association of Boxing Commissions regulations, boxers in bouts contested above 147 pounds must use 10-ounce gloves.
Fighters in bouts at 147 pounds or lower use eight-ounce gloves. Boxing the heavily favored Mayweather with eight-ounce gloves would be perceived as an advantage for McGregor, a southpaw whose power has served him well in mixed martial arts matches (21-3, 18 KOs).
The 40-year-old Mayweather has boxed above the 147-pound limit for just three of his 49 professional fights. He won each of those 12-round bouts by decision over Oscar De La Hoya (split decision), Miguel Cotto (unanimous decision) and Canelo Alvarez (majority decision).
McGregor, meanwhile, fought as high as 170 pounds (welterweight in MMA) and as low as 155 pounds (lightweight in MMA) in 2016.
Ireland’s McGregor lamented during a press conference Tuesday at Staples Center in Los Angeles that he’ll have to wear bigger gloves with more padding when he meets Mayweather (49-0, 26 KOs) on August 26 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (Showtime Pay-Per-View; $99.95 in HD).
“All these rules, all these restrictions, it doesn’t faze me – it amuses me,” McGregor said. “The gloves, they have to be 10-ounce [for fights at] 154 pounds. He’s never fought at 154. I think he’s fought at 154 maybe once. He wants the gloves up. No problem. Give him the gloves up. I’ll wear 10 ounces.
“No Mexican-made gloves. OK, no problem. No gloves made out of horsehair. All right, no problem. I don’t give a f***. We’re only wearing gloves in our game about five years, so I don’t give a sh*t about gloves or any of that. I’m just enjoying it. It’s funny to me, all these rules. All I need is a gumshield, line me up to the ring and I’m good to go.”
When it was his turn to speak Tuesday, Mayweather claimed he would fight McGregor while wearing eight-ounce gloves.
“If you want eight-ounce gloves, let’s put eight-ounce gloves on,” Mayweather yelled at McGregor. “If you want four-ounce gloves, let’s put four-ounce gloves on. Don’t fool the public! Don’t fool the public!”
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.
