Floyd Mayweather battered Conor McGregor with 15-punch combination to score famous KO and win $400M mega-fight

26/08/2024 11:10

Floyd Mayweather brought his legendary boxing career to an end with a spectacular combination of punches to knock out Conor McGregor.

In August 2017, the former five-weight world champion stretched his perfect record to 50-0 in a bizarre and lucrative fight with a boxing novice.

McGregor was the biggest star in combat sports after knocking out Eddie Alvarez to win his lightweight belt and become the first dual-weight champion in UFC history.

'Notorious' had pretty much outgrown his sport before crossing over to boxing and testing himself against the man some fans argue is the best boxer ever.

The Irishman started relatively well, and even managed to land a couple of eye-catching shots – but he appeared off balance and unable to generate the power he showcased in the UFC.

Mayweather allowed McGregor to punch himself out before stepping on the gas to ultimately score a TKO win in the tenth round of 'The Money Fight'.

McGregor was completely exhausted by then. The 36-year-old, who was 29 at the time, was so tired he was unable to get his hands up to defend himself from his opponent's onslaught.

Footage of the fight-ending sequence shows Mayweather landing 15 consecutive blows as he pummelled McGregor, who bravely refused to go down.

Ultimately, referee Robert Byrd stepped in and waved off the fight.

Despite the result, McGregor walked away a winner as he banked $100million for his efforts, while Mayweather cashed a $300m cheque before walking away from pro boxing.

It seems like a lot of money, but whoever fronted their purses was quickly paid back as Mayweather vs McGregor sold 4.3m pay-per-views in the U.S.

That was just short of the all-time PPV record set at 4.6m – which some believe will never be beaten – when Mayweather fought Manny Pacquiao two years prior.

Gate revenue from ticket sales raked in $55m at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Once again, it's only bettered by Mayweather vs Pacquiao, which generated $72m.

Mayweather has continued to make millions in boxing since retiring.

The 47-year-old has had several lucrative exhibition bouts against influencers Logan Paul, Deji and Aaron Chalmers, as well as facing MMA fighters and an old sparring partner.

Mayweather ‘fired the referee’ during his latest dominant exhibition rematch with John Gotti III.

McGregor has flirted with a return to boxing but has mostly been focused on MMA and his business empire since his debut in the sport seven years ago.

'Mystic Mac' is 1-3 in UFC fights since facing Mayweather, but that didn't stop him from topping the Forbes list of rich athletes after making around $180m in 2021.

McGregor broke his leg during a trilogy bout with Dustin Poirier at UFC 264 in July 2021 and has been sidelined ever since.

A comeback fight with Michael Chandler has been booked since February 2023, but it’s still not taken place 18 months later.

McGregor broke his toe and withdrew from a proposed main event at UFC 303 in June and now it’s unclear if he’ll return to action in 2024.

McGregor and Chandler have publicly agreed to fight each other in December, but Dana White is unsure if his biggest star will feature before the end of the year.

"We talked. We talked," White recently said when asked about his biggest star.

“We didn't meet up, but we talked, and yeah, he wants to fight.

"So, we'll figure it out. Not this year. He won't fight this year."

MMA fans are impatiently waiting for official confirmation about McGregor's long-awaited and eagerly anticipated comeback bout.

It has now been seven years to the day since the pair met in their boxing clash, a fight which changed the shape of the sport forever.

It carried incredible fanfare, and sent McGregor’s name cannoning even further into the stratosphere alongside Mayweather.

The clash has inspired a whole wave of UFC fighters coming over to boxing, with the prospect of lucrative paydays matching McGregor’s on offer.

Jake Paul has fought some of the UFC’s biggest former names including Nate Diaz and Anderson Silva during his controversial boxing career.

Most notably, Francis Ngannou stepped in the ring at heavyweight coming over to take on Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua within one year.