Terence Crawford reveals why he turned down an official offer to fight Conor McGregor in MMA… 'Sometimes it ain't about the money'
10/03/2024 04:13 AM
Conor McGregor was once again on the verge of a huge crossover combat sports event as boxing champion Terence Crawford recently revealed he turned down an official two-fight offer to fight the Irishman in MMA and boxing.
This past September, Terence Crawford extended his undefeated record to 41-0 when he beat Israil Madrimov via unanimous decision.
Since then, former UFC double champion Conor McGregor claimed he was offered a two-fight deal to fight Crawford in both MMA and boxing in a completely unprecedented event.
Terence Crawford reveals why he turned down the deal to fight Conor McGregor
When ‘The Notorious’ McGregor entered the boxing world to take on Floyd Mayweather back in 2017, McGregor reportedly made over $100m, while ‘Money’ Mayweather made over $350m.
Although Crawford knows that a potential two-fight deal against McGregor would make him a substantial amount of money, he has explained why he turned down the official offer.
“I told Conor to himself, I said, ‘Hell no’. They called me, they offered me the fight, and me and Conor got on the phone and we started politicking, you know, trying to figure something out,” Crawford told Bernie Tha Boxer.
“And I just told him, ‘Man I’m not getting in no f*cking Octagon with you so you can be kicking me and elbowing me and sh*t’, he starts laughing and sh*t and he’s like, ‘Man, I respect that because you respect my sport like I respect your sport, if you get in the Octagon with me, you’re gonna be at a disadvantage, just like if I get in the boxing ring with you, I’m at a disadvantage’.
“But he was like, ‘We’ll make a sh*t tonne of money’, I said ‘Yeah, sometimes it ain’t about the money’. I can make money but you ain’t about to start kicking me dude, them kicks and elbows ain’t no joke,” Crawford admitted.
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Who Conor McGregor may end up fighting on his UFC return
After UFC CEO Dana White revealed that the Irishman wouldn’t be returning to the Octagon until at least the first quarter of next year, his original opponent, Michael Chandler decided to take a different fight.
With that, it is unclear whether ‘The Notorious’ will end up fighting ‘Iron’ on his return, or if the promotion will match him up with a different lightweight.
Number five-ranked contender, Dan Hooker recently claimed that he is going to be in attendance for BKFC Spain, which is promoted by McGregor, and is hoping to speak to the 36-year-old about a possible fight.
There are several suitors for the possible big payday fight against McGregor, with Justin Gaethje’s name also being floated about.
