If there’s one thing you can say about Floyd Mayweather it’s that he’s never lacking confidence.
Mayweather has been teasing for months that he was considering a crossover into mixed martial arts for a potential rematch with Conor McGregor after defeating him in a boxing match last year.
Just recently, UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley even revealed that he had spoken to Mayweather about training him for his mixed martial arts debut and believed he could get the 41-year old retired boxer ready for a fight inside three months.
Even Mayweather believes he’d need more time than that, but there’s no doubt in his mind that he could pick up that skill set to make his UFC debut.
“I’m going to start [training] soon,” Mayweather said when speaking to TMZ. “[Tyron and I] been texting back and forth. We talked a couple times so we’re going to start working out real soon. With everything you’ve got to make adjustments, so it’s probably going to be a little bit difficult but it is what it is.
“I can’t overlook or knock any MMA guy. Tyron is unbelievable – unbelievable fighter, tough competitor. Conor McGregor, he’s a tough competitor, a hell of a fighter. There’s a lot of tough, rugged guys out there in the MMA. I can’t overlook or disrespect those guys.”
Mayweather has spent more than two decades honing his boxing skills to become one of the greatest pugilists the sport has ever known but that’s a much different animal than competing in mixed martial arts.
“Of course, they’re going to present the right numbers and we going to make it happen,” ~ Floyd Mayweather on competing for the UFC.
Still, Mayweather feels like his wrestling is already solid, despite never competing in the sport at any level, and it would only be a matter of time before he could add new weapons to his arsenal like a kicking game.
“I’ll probably need a little bit longer [than three months],” Mayweather said. “A little bit longer. Even if it takes six to eight months, whatever it takes, we just want to make sure everything is done correctly, and everything is done the right way.
“I can wrestle. My wrestling game is not that bad. On a scale from one to 10, I would say it’s probably a seven. I think we can take it up to a nine, if possible. Of course my hand game, on a scale of one to 10, it’s 100. The kicking game, on a scale from one to 10, it’s probably a four. We have to tweak a few things to take things to the next level.”
Despite Mayweather’s comments on his potential crossover to the UFC, there is still a large amount of skepticism that his talk about fighting in mixed martial arts is nothing more than a publicity stunt to keep his name in the headlines.
That being said, Mayweather isn’t backing down from his belief that a deal will be struck with the UFC so he can make his MMA debut one day in the future.
“It’s all about presenting the right numbers,” Mayweather said. “Of course, they’re going to present the right numbers and we going to make it happen.”
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