Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
KNOCKOUT ONLY WAY FOR FLOYD
FLOYD MAYWEATHER insists he has to knock out Conor Mcgregor as even a points win for the undefeated boxing superstar would be a ‘victory’ for the Dubliner.
The American, with a 49-0 record, is putting pressure on himself to finish two-weight UFC champion Mcgregor in their boxing bout in two weeks.
“It is a victory for him,” said Mayweather at his open workout on Thursday night. “If he goes the distance, it’s a victory for him. In my eyes, also.”
“He believes it’s not gonna go past four and I believe that it’s not gonna go the distance at all. We’re both confident in our skills. We’ll just have to see.”
Mayweather suggested that even if Mcgregor does have the age and power advantage, his boxing acumen and fighting instinct will be decisive.
“Of course, the so-called boxing experts, they say things like, ‘Oh when a guy is bigger and stronger, that means he’s better,’” Mayweather said.
“What I’m saying is this: On paper, we know he’s taller, we know he has a longer reach, we know youth is on his side. OK? And I guess everybody is saying power is on his side. But I’m saying IQ is on my side, experience is on my side and I think fighting knowledge is on my side.
“So I never said that I feel I’m going to lose. I never get involved in anything if I think I’m going to take a loss. That’s like me saying, ‘Yes I’m going to invest my money, but I know I’m gonna take a loss, but I’m still going to invest it.’”
Instead of watching endless amounts of fight tape on Mcgregor, who will contest his first pro boxing bout against ‘Money’ in Las Vegas, Mayweather is trying to find out as much as he can about the Irishman.
“It’s about doing your homework,” Mayweather said. “It’s not really watching fight tapes. It’s really just knowing the person across the ring from you. It’s doing your due diligence.”