Top UFC Lightweight Thinks McGregor ‘Might Do Something Stupid’
With the undercard for tonight’s (Sat., August 26, 2017) massive Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor boxing match from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nev., already underway, the biggest combat sports night of the year – and some would say of all time – is nearly in full swing.
The time for speculating just how UFC lightweight champ McGregor, who has no professional boxing matches on his record, can defeat the undefeated Mayweather, who is widely regarded as the best defensive boxer of all time, is growing short. But as the hour draws near, one UFC contender believes McGregor may actually break the rules against Mayweather.
Top-ranked lightweight Tony Ferguson, who takes on Kevin Lee for the interim title at October 7’s UFC 216, offered that belief at the UFC media day this past Thursday (transcribed by MMA Fighting), noting that “The Notorious” may get frustrated and use an illegal move when he is caught in the moment:
“We might see Conor do something stupid on accident if he panics. You know what I’m saying? He might throw an elbow or he might headbutt or he might do something, like he doesn’t realize. You’re in the middle of a fight, you’re in a war. You’re not gonna say anything. What’s his number one sport? MMA. So I mean, that being said, point taken here is shit can happen. It’s a fight.”
With nine wins in a row to his credit but a seemingly never-ending drama with oft-scheduled but never realized contender Khabib Nurmagomedov, Ferguson has time to analyze Mayweather vs. McGregor, and he believes it’s going to be more about the unorthodox McGregor’s movement and footwork more than most believe.
If he can’t keep the conditioning in his legs, “El Cucuy” believes he may find himself out of his element:
“Everybody thinks the conditioning in boxing has to do with your arms. What’s the first thing to go? It’s your legs. And when your legs go, what happens? [Your arms] start to drop. Now, like I said, if Conor did his punching on his bag and he didn’t do all the rest of the conditioning with it, like I said, boxing is a completely different animal.”
Indeed boxing is a completely different animal, and it’s also one that Mayweather has ruled with an iron fist for many years on his way to his shining 49-0 record.
But regardless of that number, many are still picking McGregor to shock the world and become the first fighter – boxer or not – to sleep the notoriously hard-to-hit “Money” in Vegas tonight. Ferguson thinks he may break the rules and incorporate a banned MMA move or two into his arsenal – but do you believe he really needs it?
