Floyd Mayweather confirmed that he kept his training for his 2017 fight against Conor McGregor to a minimum. In fact, according to the boxer, he basically didn’t make any preparations at all. Though the bout was a star-studded affair that drew in millions of viewers, it ultimately ended in a somewhat slow and unsurprising victory for Mayweather.
The boxer appeared on the Tidal show Drink Champs, hosted by hip-hop legend N.O.R.E. During the two and a half hour interview, Mayweather shared some of his thoughts about his past fights — including his infamous fight against former UFC champ McGregor.
“For the Conor McGregor [fight], I didn’t really train,” Mayweather said. “All I did was do pushups and situps. That’s all I did. Pushups and situps, box a few times, hit the bag a few times, because, actually, training camp was in different places. I would do training camp in Vegas a few days, [but] sometimes I wouldn’t go to the gym for a week.”
Floyd Mayweather took it serious — mostly
The boxer’s reply earned a genuine “Geez Louise!” from N.O.R.E. DJ EFN followed up, asking Mayweather if he genuinely took the fight as a challenge. “I took it serious,” the boxer shrugged, “like I said before, I wanted to have some fun in the fight and I wanted to entertain the people.”
Although boxing critics and fans weren’t as entertained as they hoped to be, Mayweather still delivered. He ultimately came away with a tenth-round TKO victory over the MMA fighter. Earlier in the interview, the boxer explained that his strategy for a fight is directly related to his record in past bouts.
“My thing is this,” Mayweather said, “I don’t have to watch any footage of a fighter because I’m Floyd Mayweather. Everybody’s got to watch me.”
His father said something similar after the fight
The boxer’s explanation somewhat matches up with his father’s words shortly after the original bout. Floyd Mayweather Sr. said that his son could have beaten McGregor earlier in the fight, but he didn’t bother working hard or doing any serious prep work. He went as far as saying that the boxer “did not train for that fight” whatsoever.
The undefeated boxer didn’t bother humbling his past accomplishments or his skills in the ring. When N.O.R.E. asked Mayweather to stop taking up new bouts and just retire on his throne with an undefeated record, Mayweather smiled and shook his head. “These are not fights,” he told the host, “this is called entertainment.”
“I’m the best at what I do,” Mayweather explained. “Capital G, capital O, capital A, capital T.”