Johnson to file complaint against Cormier weigh-in
Johnson will file a formal complaint about Cormier’s weigh-in. Johnson’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz says he immediately informed Dana White about the action before the match, but did not mention it publicly in case it affected the fight, which Cormier won. Abdelaziz:
Anthony’s rights were violated. We will go through the proper legal channels to fix this. Everybody saw what happened. How do you lose 1.2 pounds in two minutes?..We don’t want to take anything away from [Cormier]. He earned that win. But [Cormier] needs to give up 20 percent of his purse to Anthony. He had two extra hours to cut the weight and I think he probably would have made it — but as it happened, I don’t think he made weight…I understand New York is new to regulating mixed martial arts, but they’ve been doing boxing for a long time,” he said. “Everybody is trying to sweep this under the rug, but it’s not going to happen.
White not expecting Rousey to return to UFC
At the UFC 210 post-fight media scrum, White says he is not expecting Rousey to return to the UFC.
Ronda and I talk maybe once a week, once every two weeks. She has not said anything to me about a comeback…If I had to guess, I would guess that she would not come back.
White calls out Jeff Mayweather, Bob Arum over McGregor purse claims
At the UFC 210 after-fight press conference, White criticizes Jeff Mayweather’s and Bob Arum’s claim that the UFC would take a high percentage of McGregor’s purse.
What I would like to clarify is all the bullshit about the 80 f-cking 20 split. Jeff Mayweather? Come on, Jeff. Me and Jeff go way back. Jeff, are you the spokesman now for f-cking Team Mayweather? And Bob Arum? You piece of shit. F-ck you, too. What do they know about this fight? You want to know what they know about this fight? Nothing. Believe me, we’ve had preliminary talks with Conor and I’m in a good place with Conor and we’re going to meet in New York when he has his baby.
Jeff Mayweather: UFC wants 80% of McGregor’s earnings
Jeff Mayweather says McGregor has been offered an uneven split by the UFC to fight his nephew.
Last I heard, Conor McGregor has to take a horrendous split: 80 to 20 percent. [McGregor] would have to take 20 percent, if he’s allowed to fight. And the one thing is that Dana’s his boss. He’ll still make more money than he ever did, but at the same time … that’s a very tough pill to swallow.
Kavanagh: McGregor can beat Woodley easily
At an event at the Star Casino in Sydney, Kavanagh explains how McGregor can beat Woodley.
I’d fancy [Conor] in there with Woodley. He’s just another wrestler with an overhand right, and that’s the type Conor grew up knocking out. So I wouldn’t see a massive challenge in that. I would like to see Gunni get that belt. Gunnar Nelson will be the next SBG world champion.
Kavanagh: McGregor to return to MMA in the summer if there’s no Mayweather fight
At an event at Sydney’s Star Casino, Coach Kavanagh says McGregor will return to MMA if the Mayweather fight doesn’t happen.
What I see happening this year is the Mayweather fight, maybe the end of the summer or something like that. [But] let’s say Mayweather doesn’t want to do it, for whatever reason. Then I could see us fighting in MMA by the end of the summer, [for] the lightweight belt. One thing you’ve got to understand about Conor — and this might rattle your bones — is his motivation is not money when it comes to fighting. Right now, even with his ridiculous spending habits, he wouldn’t be able to spend his money by the time he retired. It’s not money that’s getting him up in the morning. It’s the competition. It’s facing someone he genuinely feels is a threat.
Kavanagh: Mayweather is a ‘dirtbag’
At an event at the Star Casino in Sydney, Australia, Kavanagh says that while he respects Mayweather as a fighter, he has none for him as a person.
I do think Floyd Mayweather is pretty much a dirtbag. He’s beat up his girlfriends…He just strikes me as a real bullying type character. He makes these guys fight endless rounds (in his gym) until one is badly hurt…just not a good individual. In saying that, that’s his personality. Technically he’s obviously a very, very sound boxer. I’m a fan of his skills but as a human being, the way he runs his gym and the way he carries himself…
Jones: Cormier’s weigh-in ‘One of the dirtiest things I’ve seen in all of sports’
Jones says he cannot believe Cormier’s weigh in.
That was absolutely nuts. I couldn’t believe what I was witnessing. If you focus on his hands you can see him looking down and balancing out his weight just right to make 205. What a clever trick. Pretty dishonest of him. The crazy thing was that it was allowed to happen. I would imagine there would have to be some sort of commission or something to go back and see this blatant foul play and address it. They just completely got away with doing one of the dirtiest things I’ve seen in sports.
Kavanagh talks about McGregor’s secret training
At an event in Sydney’s Star Casino, Coach Kavanagh says that preparations for a McGregor-Mayweather fight have been underway for some time. He also says the fight will happen in September, and if not, certainly by the end of the year.
It’s happening, 100 per cent. Before I came out here I had a sit down with Conor and we (put in place) a training plan. Right now he’s doing base level cardio training so that when I get back we can go into specific training. We have a ‘secret dojo’ set up with a championship-level boxing ring that will exactly mirror the situation when it happens. Where my gym is, the guy who owns my gym, owns the entire estate, and there’s a building — I’m kinda giving away a secret here — there’s a building at the back and he’s just going to give it to me until the fight is on. So we’re getting that kitted out. We’re going to make it into kind of a stadium with a full-sized boxing ring. We’ll have weekly or biweekly sparring sessions where we invite people in to make it feel like a fight and bring in different sparring partners.
What makes the Mayweather fight competitive? Well, Mayweather’s Mayweather, in terms of defensive boxing — I’ve studied Mayweather, I find this ‘Philly shell’ fascinating, how he’s able to keep himself safe — but everyone can be beat. He’s had trouble in the past with southpaws. Pacquiao got some good shots off on him. There were moments in that fight where Pacquiao could have done some things a little different. The way he was able to tie Pacquiao up on the inside — he’s not going to do that to us. If he tries to tie us up in the clinch, that’s not going to work. And [McGregor] has the death touch. If that lands, I don’t care if you’re Mayweather, Juneweather, Julyweather … you’re still going to go down.
White: McGregor-Mayweather to happen in 2017
White says the Mayweather-McGregor fight will happen in 2017.
I think you will [see it before the end of 2017]. Conor McGregor is having a baby right now. After his girlfriend delivers her baby, we will start working on this deal. I think we are actually there [in terms of the financial details]. I think we are in a good place. I just need to get together with him and finalize some stuff and then it’s on to Mayweather.
When asked if there is a risk to McGregor:
Absolutely and I think you have to look at it for instance, [seven] years ago, James Toney came into the UFC and fought and he got completely embarrassed in a minute and a half in another sport [against Randy Couture]…[But] If you sit down and talk to Conor McGregor, he’ll make you believe he’s going to win the fight. I’m fascinated to see how this thing plays out.
Alberto: McGregor ‘will be President of Ireland’ if he touches Mayweather
Berto, who was beaten by Mayweather in 2015, says that while he thinks McGregor can’t beat Mayweather, there is a huge upside for the Irish fighter.
Understand this, if McGregor comes in here and he clips that man – it doesn’t matter if he doesn’t win – if he catches Floyd, knocks him down or hurts him… like I said, McGregor can’t… unless Floyd just embarrasses him, if McGregor goes there and puts on a good fight, if he catches Floyd, he hurts Floyd, he drops Floyd, if he knocks Floyd out, oh it’s over! It’s OVER! McGregor going to be the president over in Ireland. He might be president over here. That should be crazy. I don’t know, man. Like I said, man, it’s the fight game. Anything can happen, so shit, if it happens, good luck to both guys.
White: McGregor-Mayweather will be ‘one and done’
White says that he is pushing back on those asking for more MMA-boxing crossover fights.
No, I don’t like the idea of opening up a bunch of different crossover fights. But you know, now this things been talked about so big it’s all everybody wants to talk about now, and my guys are saying they wanna fight that guy and other boxers saying they wanna fight this guy, no, this is going to be a one and done. That means the discussion itself can be refocused on the money men, McGregor and Mayweather, a fight that as traction builds continues to garner speculation and prediction…It’s an intriguing fight, it really is intriguing…If you break the thing down — and listen, everyone has their opinions, and I’m not going to say who’s going to win or lose — Floyd’s 40-years old. Conor’s 27. Floyd has trouble with southpaws, Conor’s a southpaw. Conor has knockout power in both hands, and Floyd does not. It’s an intriguing fight.
White on McGregor vs. Mayweather: ‘I almost feel like I have to make it’
White says he feels almost obligated to help get the McGregor-Mayweather fight organised.
This kid steps up. He’ll fight anybody, anywhere, anytime. A lot of people say it, very few really mean it. Conor McGregor, I call him the unicorn. I’ve never dealt with a kid like this. So for him to have this kind of opportunity, to make this kind of money, this type of a fight that people are so interested in worldwide, I almost feel like I have to make it…It’s a fight that people do want to see. It’s intriguing and obviously it’s a fight that Conor wants because financially it’s going to be massive for him. He’s a guy that I have a lot of respect for. This guy has stepped up at times when people were at his level would never step up. I’ve said this a million times and I’ll say it again — I’m the guy standing in the living room, I’m the guy on the phone when these guys are looking down the barrel of a new opponent a week before the fight and Conor McGregor doesn’t flinch.
Nevada State Commission: McGregor still to apply for boxing license
NSAC Executive Director Bennett says McGregor has pad his dues and is now eligible for a boxing license in the state.
Conor has paid the fine, he’s paid the Deputy Attorney General’s fees and has been a man of his word. All he has to do now, if he’s so inclined to, is apply for a boxing license. He’s certainly eligible and we hope that he does…We are the fight capital of the world and we’d love to have him back here in Vegas. We had a very productive, professional and cordial meeting with Conor and his attorneys. His litigation is over, he’s paid his fine as we had a rehearing and he paid what was asked of him. Floyd set a fine example for all boxers before he got out of the business, but now he may come back in for the fight with Conor, so it’s definitely an approvable fight and a great one.
Kavanagh: McGregor has started training for Mayweather fight
Coach Kavanagh says McGregor has started to put together the training agenda to fight Mayweather.
In my mind, it’s on. That’s the mentality we’re in. Like you said, there’s a lot of fingers in the pie on this one. There’s different promotions, different organizations, different commissions that are involved but as far as I’m concerned, I really believe it’s going to happen this year. That’s the mindset I have. Let the people in the suits worry about the paperwork. We’re training for it.
On the training program:
Boxing is one of the 10 skills you need for mixed martial arts. But now we’re only doing boxing so we can drop wrestling and jiu-jitsu and Thai boxing, we can just focus on the boxing. So of course we’re getting ready to fight arguably one of the best defensive boxers of all time, but the training will become simplified ’cause we only have to do boxing so it’s a new challenge I’m excited about.
Cormier: McGregor will ‘get killed’ by Mayweather
Cormier gives his opinion on a fight between McGregor and Mayweather.
Floyd kills him. Conor McGregor can’t box Floyd Mayweather. Let’s be real with ourselves. Neither one of these guys can do the other guy’s sport…[But] It’s looking more and more likely. Even if Conor was to fight for $50 million and the UFC took $20 million, you don’t make a $30 million pay day in MMA. You just don’t in one fight…I say go do it.
Hatton: Mayweather would beat McGregor by ‘an absolute shutout’
Hatton, who fought Mayweather at Welterweight, says McGregor can’t win against the boxer.
It’s two totally different sports and I think Mayweather would win by an absolute shutout… I struggled nailing him, Canelo struggled nailing him, De La Hoya struggled nailing him. No disrespect [but] I can’t see Conor doing it…Conor can punch and he is good with his fists but it’s a different game.
Nelson uncertain of McGregor 2017 UFC return
Gunnar Nelson, McGregor’s training partner says it’s unlikely McGregor will return to UFC in 2017.
It will depend on certain things. Money is not the only thing he cares about, at all. He does care about it a lot, but if a fight excites him and he thinks it’s a great challenge — if it’s making history and all that kind of stuff — he’ll do it…He’s got a lot of money now that keeps him occupied. He can do a lot of stuff. I think he’d be all right for a year. He always has something cooking. Right now, it’s the Mayweather fight, and that seems like it’s going to happen. I think he’ll keep himself busy one way or another…If he wouldn’t have anything to do, he’d probably be up to no good. He’ll always figure something out. He needs excitement.
Nurmagomedov: Failure to make weight ‘100% my fault’
Nurmagomedov says he is completely responsible for not making weight at UFC 209, and that he still wants to fight Ferguson.
You know I don’t remember a lot of things, to be honest. Last night [before weigh in] and I know – I am going to a hospital, I feel bad. I know that a lot of fans are upset with me about this and I agree with this guys. Because this is one of the biggest fights in Russian MMA. for me, I can make history but I am going to the hospital you know. But sometimes this happens, sometimes you can die, you know. Everybody can die, everybody can [get] sick. Now I need a couple of months. Like two or three months. After three months I come for hard training and I want to fight in September. “I think this is my fault, this is my fault. I know that [my] body don’t listen to me and I think, I know, this is my fault. How can I say that this is the coach’s fault or the diet guy’s fault? This is 100% my fault. This is my dream fight – a fight with Tony Ferguson. I know I pulled out, but he pulled out one time, too. But nobody talked when he pulled out. When I pull out – everybody talks about this. But it’s ok. Inshallah (God willing) I will come back and we’ll see what happens.
Mayweather: ‘Conor McGregor, stop ducking and dodging’
Mayweather calls out McGregor.
Conor McGregor, stop ducking and dodging Floyd Mayweather. I’m out of retirement just for Conor McGregor. Tell UFC to let’s make this fight happen…He called me out, he act like he wanted this to happen, so let’s make this happen.
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