UFC News: Manny Pacquiao offers to step in and fight Conor McGregor if Floyd Mayweather fight falls through

Manny Pacquiao and Conor McGregor 

What’s the story?

The most interesting story in combat sports over the last few months is the possibility of a boxing match between undefeated boxing champion Floyd “Money” Mayweather and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Lightweight Champion Conor “The Notorious” McGregor. Apparently, McGregor has another boxing superstar that would like to fight with him inside the boxing 

In case you didn’t know…ring, and that is Manny Pacquiao. 

Mcgregor may be the biggest global superstar in combat sports, which has led to a plethora of fighters calling out “The Notorious”. As it pertains to Mayweather, both sides have not come close to an agreement regarding the fight purse and the pay-per-view points; which is why talks have halted.

Mayweather believes he’s the biggest draw in the world because his record is 49-0 and he’s worth a whopping 340 million dollars according to Forbes.com. On another note, McGregor has been the biggest draw as of late in combat sports, as he set UFC pay-per-view records at UFC 205 in which he headlined.  

The heart of the matter:

Mayweather and McGregor sounds great but doesn’t seem likely, which opens the door for megastar Pacquiao to throw his hat in the equation. Pacquiao sat down with Fox Sports News 500 for an exclusive interview and when asked if he would fight McGregor in place of Mayweather, he had this to say: 

“In boxing? In boxing (I would) but not in (UFC), just boxing.”

Pacquiao also added, “I didn’t see it [footage of Conor sparring]. But if we are talking about Conor McGregor and boxing, it’s different. Boxing is different than MMA.”

What’s next?

The McGregor and Mayweather saga will continue but it’ll be interesting to see how much steam the Pacquiao and McGregor possibility gets going forward. This may also apply more pressure on Mayweather, knowing that he has competition for his big money fight with McGregor. 

Sportskeeda’s Take:

In my opinion, Mayweather needs to be more realistic when negotiating the fight purse in this deal before he loses the fight all together. McGregor is going to make more money than he’s ever made in his career if he fights Pacquiao or Mayweather, so he’s in a win-win situation regardless of the opponent.

Conor is known to be very active and a great business man, so I expect him to make a definitive decision sooner than later.