WBA and WBC boxing champion Keith Thurman believes Conor McGregor showcased his boxing abilities when he defeated Nate Diaz.
Tonight (Aug. 26), McGregor will take on Floyd Mayweather inside the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The “super fight” will be contested for the “Money Belt.” Mayweather claims this will be his last professional boxing bout.
McGregor will enter the bout without a professional boxing match. While his skills inside the Octagon are unquestioned, his lack of boxing experience has caused criticism. MMAFighting.com recently interviewed Thurman, who said McGregor proved himself as a boxer with his majority decision win over Diaz at UFC 202:
“For me, he became a boxer when he defeated Nate Diaz. The reason I say that is because whenever he struck Nate Diaz with a straight-left hand that knocked him down to the ground, he (McGregor) didn’t take advantage of the MMA rules, which allow him to keep attacking Nate Diaz while he’s still on the ground. He simply stood up and kept telling Diaz, ‘stand back up, stand back up.’ I’m wondering why the referee ain’t just giving them a 10 count, and if he doesn’t stand up in 10 then the fight is over, so that looked like a boxing match to me.”
