MMA legend Bas Rutten believes UFC superstar Conor McGregor will pull off the upset of the century, by defeating five division champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. in a boxing match.
Mayweather, 40 years old, will come out of retirement to face McGregor on August 26th at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Mayweather has been retired since September of 2015.
McGregor, regarded as one of the best MMA fighters in the world, is making his debut in a boxing ring and most experts are predicting a complete mismatch.
Rutten on the other hand is fully backing McGregor to hand Mayweather the first defeat of his pro career.
“I’m putting my money on McGregor. I’m going to believe Mystic Mac. He wants to end it in four rounds and he has made predictions before. Mayweather has everything to lose. If he loses he lost to a guy who has never had a boxing fight, and if he wins, he is expected to win. There is a chance of injury for Mayweather from the unusual movement and awkwardness of McGregor. Conor wins and Floyd’s legacy is ruined," Rutten told the Talking With TK podcast.
On the other hand, UFC heavyweight veteran Mark Hunt is not in agreement. He believes Mayweather has too strong of an advantage and views the contest as a financial pairing.
“Do you think Mayweather would like to put a '1' on his record and lose to a novice? Someone with no experience in boxing? It’s all about the money. Mayweather wins the fight but hopefully Conor gets a good punch on him. [If you are betting] the smart money is on Conor, the odds of Mayweather winning is too high. It’s not McGregor’s forte [to involve himself in this kind of fight], he loses a lot of weapons [he would use in MMA]; it’s only boxing," Hunt said.
