Nevada Commission: McGregor is Worthy of Mayweather Fight

By Edward Chaykovsky

Nevada Athletic Commission executive director Bob Bennett sees no problem with approving a cross-sports boxing match between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and UFC superstar Conor McGregor.

The discussions to make Mayweather vs. McGregor have been heating up, with UFC President Dana White finally on board with allowing that fight to take place - provided a financial agreement can be made with the UFC.

Mayweather, 40 years old and a former five division world champion, retired in September 2015 with his perfect 49-0 record. Last month, he announced that he would unretire - but only to take part in a fight with McGregor.

Both boxing and MMA experts view the bout as a gross mismatch. 

But Bennett, who seemed hesitant to get on board with this contest in the past, explained why the Nevada Commission would approve such a fight.

“When you go back, he took up kickboxing at the age of 12. As a youth he became an All-Ireland boxing champion. He goes to the UFC, of course he had several [MMA] fights before that, and while he’s with the UFC he’s 21-3 with 17 of those wins coming via knockout or TKO," Bennett told Boxing News.

“He’s a stand-up fighter, he’s a southpaw, he hits like a tonne of bricks, he’s got a great jaw, he’s 5’ 9’’ and he’s got a reach of 74 inches. If you take a look at his wins in the UFC, they’re predominantly from striking [punching] and if you take a look at the fact he was able to move from 145[lbs] to 155 to 170, he’s displayed some awesome unarmed combat skills.

“He’s proven that he can fight as a stand-up fighter. I’ve seen some tape of him boxing, I’m sure I’ll get an updated version of his skill-set as a fighter. I certainly think he’s worthy of being approved to fight Floyd Mayweather. His UFC background is critical in approving this fight.”