According to Leonard Ellerbe, CEO of Mayweather Promotions, Floyd Mayweather Jr. was blown away by the public demand for a fight with UFC superstar Conor McGregor.
Mayweather announced on Wednesday that he was coming out of retirement to face McGregor in a boxing match on August 26th at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Showtime Pay-Per-View will handle.
Mayweather, a five division world champion, retired from boxing in September 2015 after winning a twelve round decision over Andre Berto.
The fight had been rumored for months after the two athletes began taunting each other a year ago.
Mayweather was unsure if he actually wanted to return for the bout - until he and his handlers were being hounded everywhere on the subject.
“Everywhere I go. And they do the same with [Mayweather]. So he’s like, ‘f*** it, let’s make this sh*t happen. If that’s what everybody wants to see, we’re going to make that sh*t happen," Ellerbe said. "The amount of attention that this fight has gotten already – any and everywhere I go – it’s all people talk about. And it’s just not young men from, you know. It’s just not young ladies."
“I was in the grocery store last night. And the lady had to be probably like 60 years old. Her son actually taps me, and she’s like, ‘Are you really going to make that fight?’ I’m like, ‘Wow.’ Those kind of things, you know when you’ve got something really really special – when people from all different walks of life come to you asking you about it. And it’s not even made.”
Mayweather has been involved in the three biggest fights in boxing history. His bout with Manny Pacquiao, in May 2015, generated over $600 million in revenue and 4.6 million buys on pay-per-view.
Ellerbe believes this fight is bigger.
“This is bigger. Everything about this feel is bigger. Everything about this feel. Again, me personally, I can’t go nowhere without everybody asking me the same damn thing, and it’s about, ‘Is Floyd going to fight Conor McGregor?’ [The Pacquiao fight] was the biggest thing we had done prior to. With us being out front that whole thing – I know what big events feel like, just like Dana [White]. We’ve done the biggest fights in boxing history," Ellerbe said.