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      ‘He would never have to fight again’ – Floyd Mayweather slammed by Adrien Broner for not agreeing $200m exhibition

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      ADRIEN BRONER has hit out at his former mentor Floyd Mayweather for failing to agree a $200million exhibition bout with him. Mayweather has boxed in three exhibitions since retiring in 2017 after beating UFC superstar Conor McGregor.
      Adrien Broner hit out at Floyd Mayweather for failing to agree an exhibitionCredit: Amanda Westcott
      Floyd Mayweather has had three exhibitions since retiringCredit: Reuters
      They came against featherweight kickboxer Tenshin Nasukawa, YouTuber Logan Paul and ex-sparring partner Don Moore.
      But Broner – who once looked up to Mayweather – slammed the boxing legend for not picking him to fight.
      He said on Cigar Talk: “If I was Floyd and he was me, he would never have to fight again.
      “That exhibition s***, as me being his lil brother, ‘Hey lil bro, we fixing to do ten rounds, and we both going to get 100+ million for it, and we ain’t never got to box again’.
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      “Well I already been getting these bags, but now it’s time for you to get your just due.
      “That would have been done. That would have been done.”
      Broner, 33, has been out of the ring for over a year but returns on August 27 against Omar Figueroa Jr, 32.
      Mayweather, 45, also recently announced that he will return in September back in Japan, against MMA star Mikuru Asakura, 29.
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      He first faced Japan’s Nasukawa, 23, in Tokyo 2018 before a return against YouTuber Logan Paul, 27, in June 2021.
      Mayweather was in May then due to box Moore in Dubai until the death of 73-year-old UAE President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahyan.
      It delayed the fight by a week, later taking place in Abu Dhabi in May, where Moore was dominated over eight rounds.
      Floyd Mayweather is set to face MMA star Mikuru Asakura in SeptemberCredit: Getty More

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      ‘He got his ass kicked ‘ – Floyd Mayweather got ‘BEAT UP’ by Conor McGregor, says ex-UFC star amid talk of rematch

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      FLOYD MAYWEATHER “got his ass kicked” and was “BEAT UP” by Conor McGregor, claimed the outspoken Chael Sonnen. McGregor was beaten by the American boxing legend in 2017 after ten rounds in Las Vegas.
      Floyd Mayweather beat Conor McGregor in 2017Credit: USA Today Sports
      Chael Sonnen said Floyd Mayweather got ‘BEAT UP’ by Conor McGregor
      But the Irish UFC superstar did win some of the early stages, before tiring down the stretch and being stopped on his feet.
      Sonnen, an ex-UFC title challenger-turned analyst, was referencing Nate Diaz’s odd on beating rising contender Khamzat Chimaev.
      And in doing so he made an outlandish claim about McGregor’s performance in his boxing debut against Mayweather.
      Sonnen said on his YouTube channel: “12-to-1 underdog.
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      “That line is not going to hold, I’m telling you right now, but [Diaz] is a 12-to-1 underdog.
      “Diaz was an 8-1 underdog. Now 11-to-1 is what Conor McGregor vs. Floyd Mayweather was.
      “It closed to 8.5, but Conor was an 11-to-1 dog, went out, and beat up a guy for 30 minutes. [Mayweather] lost four of nine completed rounds.
      “He got his ass kicked regardless of what the crooks in the Nevada State Athletic Commission told you that night.”
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      Mayweather, 45, announced his official retirement after beating McGregor, 34, but he has boxed in three exhibition bouts since.
      The first was against featherweight kickboxer Tenshin Nasukawa, 23, in 2018 before a return against YouTuber Logan Paul, 27, in June 2021.
      Mayweather was in May then due to box Don Moore in Dubai until the death of 73-year-old UAE President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahyan.
      It delayed the fight by a week, later taking place in Abu Dhabi, where Moore was dominated over eight rounds.
      The unbeaten Hall of Famer has since announced he will return in September back in Japan, against MMA star Mikuru Asakura, 29.
      But FightHype, a media company Mayweather famously favours, reported a rematch with McGregor was in the negotiation stage.
      Floyd Mayweather is set to face MMA star Mikuru Asakura in SeptemberCredit: Getty More

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      Conor McGregor was AHEAD after four rounds into Floyd Mayweather fight, says Atlas as he breaks down UFC star’s display

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      CONOR McGREGOR was leading against Floyd Mayweather after four rounds, boxing trainer Teddy Atlas said. MMA superstar McGregor crossed codes in August 2017 as he made a professional ring debut, beaten in ten rounds by former pound-for-pound king Mayweather.
      Floyd Mayweather beat Conor McGregor in 2017Credit: Getty – Contributor
      But the Irishman, who was the UFC lightweight champion at the time, got off to a quick start.
      So much so that Atlas – working as a pundit for the fight – had him up at the half-way point – until Mayweather caught up to him.
      He said in an interview with The Schmo last year: “To the credit of McGregor, he was ahead.
      “I know you guys are going to probably choke on your pecan pie that you’re having right now but he was ahead after four rounds.
      “I was there for ESPN calling the fights, and I was there with the great Chael Sonnen sitting ringside and after four rounds he was ahead
      “He being McGregor – and there’s a reason for it: because he was using his reach.
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      “He’s a southpaw, he’s got long arms, he’s a counter puncher and he was staying outside with the counter punching, using his reach, using his jab.
      “Four rounds, he was ahead. But then, of course, Mayweather did what he had to do in his realm to break him down, and he did, and he got to him.
      “But the point I’m making is, styles make fights.”
      Despite Atlas’ claim, only one of the three judges agreed with him, as the other two had Mayweather, 45, leading three rounds to one after four.
      McGregor, 34, was given special permission by the UFC to go out of his contract and fight the boxing legend.
      Four rounds, he was ahead. But then, of course, Mayweather did what he had to do in his realm to break him down, and he did, and he got to him.Teddy Atlas on Conor McGregor’s fight with Floyd Mayweather
      Several other UFC stars have since flirted with the idea of lacing up the gloves, most recently welterweight champion Kamaru Usman, 35.
      Usman has called out boxing’s pound-for-pound best Canelo Alvarez, 32, in the past, but Atlas has warned him against the switch of codes.
      He said: “He’s got physicality, he’s very strong, he’s a decent puncher and he’s not a bad striker – although I think a lot of his strengths are on the mat with his knowledge there and his physicality.
      “You throw him in there with a B-level guy or even a good journeyman guy, no.
      “I don’t want to upset anyone with the fans out there, but as long as the rules are strictly boxing, no he wouldn’t be able to have tremendous success there.”
      Boxing trainer and pundit Teddy AtlasCredit: Getty
      UFC welterweight champion Kamaru UsmanCredit: Getty More

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      Mike Tyson was challenged to a DEATHMATCH by UFC star Royce Gracie but refused as ‘there was no way I’d win’

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      UFC icon Royce Gracie challenged Mike Tyson to a ‘no-holds-barred’ fight ‘to the finish’, a memoir revealed.The boxing legend tore apart the heavyweight division in the late 1980s before a rape conviction, along with excessive partying and further personal life problems, rocked his career.
      Brazilian MMA star Royce Gracie (right) was a pioneer of UFCCredit: Getty
      Mike Tyson was challenged to a huge match-up by the UFC legendCredit: instagram.com/miketyson
      While Iron Mike was preparing his comeback to the ring, the MMA promotion UFC was founded and Brazilian fighter Gracie, now 55, won three fights on its first night in late 1993.
      And his desire to be seen as the top fighter on Earth led to a stunning challenge for the Baddest Man on the Planet.
      In a memoir by sports writer Fiaz Rafiq last year,’ To The Top: Enter the Octagon, the Ring and Entertainment’, it was revealed: “[Tyson] was challenged by the Gracie Brothers, in particular Royce, back in the early 1990s.
      “The UFC champion’s perception was that Tyson was the best boxer in the world, but he refused to accept that Tyson was the best ‘fighter’.
      “The Gracies had a point. They had been beating all-comers from various styles long before the Octagon was first engineered.
      “And Royce wasn’t going to rest until he did everything within his means to provoke the heavyweight champion into accepting a real fight in a no-holds-barred setting.
      “To settle the matter once and for all, Royce formally challenged the most feared boxer of our time to a fight to the finish, and so did his elder brother Rickson.”
      Gracie felt that Tyson, 56, was beatable despite his huge frame and ferocity – yet the proposition was declined with Iron Mike feeling there was ‘no way he’d win’.
      To The Top: Enter the Octagon, the Ring and Entertainment is out May 3
      Rafiq wrote: “For Royce, any fight was a matter of who could implement their own strategy, and much of the Gracie style was developed to avoid even the chance of their opponent landing a lucky punch.
      “What Royce lacked in brute force, he clearly made up for in technical skill, as his opponents – including a professional boxer – quickly discovered.
      “‘There’s only one way to find out,’ he told me, as a smirk crept across his face followed by loud laughter. Sadly for posterity, Tyson declined.”
      In fact, Gracie came back a few years later with a fresh proposal, which was dismissed by a boxing world that is now clamouring for YouTube brawlers such as Jake Paul and crossover events like Conor McGregor’s match with Floyd Mayweather.
      Rafiq continued: “In Iron Mike’s case, one rejection wasn’t enough for Royce.
      “In 1997 the Gracie’s challenge made the headlines again, after the publication of a one-page advert in Men’s Health in America, in which the UFC champion once again challenged the former heavyweight boxer ‘officially’. Anywhere, anytime, no rules!
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      “Years later I asked Royce about the famous challenge, and discovered that the heavyweight had been, at least in theory, willing to put up.
      “‘I heard that my brother tried to bring him in [to the UFC],’ Royce explained. ‘He had accepted but people around him – the lawyers, managers, and the Commission – said no way, because boxing had too much to lose.
      “But he had accepted and he wanted to do it. I talked to him before and he’s like, ‘I’d love to try this stuff out, man’.
      “But people around him did not allow him to do it. If he lost a fight, if it happened, well, boxing was already in the decline in America so it wouldn’t be good for boxing’.”
      To The Top: Enter the Octagon, the Ring and Entertainment by Fiaz Rafiq is published by Pitch Publishing, released May 3 and priced at £20 in hardback or £9.99. Ebook available in bookstores and following this Amazon link.
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      Jake Paul’s fight with Rahman Jr was not cancelled due to poor ticket sales and set to be in top 10 of MSG boxing events

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      JAKE PAUL’S fight with Hasim Rahman Jr was NOT cancelled due to poor ticket sales.The YouTuber turned boxer pulled the plug on the Madison Square Garden melee last weekend over an alleged 11th-hour weight demand from Rahman Jr.
      Jake Paul’s clash with Hasim Rahman Jr was cancelled last weekendCredit: GETTY
      Weight issues for Rahman Jr were reportedly the main reason for the cancellationCredit: GETTY
      MSG insist poor ticket sales weren’t to blame for the cancellation of the boutCredit: GETTY
      UFC president Dana White and boxing promoter Eddie Hearn, however, suggested Team Paul cancelled the fight due to poor ticket sales.
      But an MSG source told SunSport “sales were strong heading into Fight Week” and the short-notice cancellation was “not based on ticket sales.”
      Paul’s clash with Rahman Jr – the son of former heavyweight champ Hasim Sr – was reportedly on course to be one of the “top 10 of highest grossing boxing events” at The Garden in the last 15 years.
      Although the event hadn’t completely sold, MSG were anticipating a deluge of tickets being bought during fight week.
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      Paul’s first clash with a professional boxer was supposedly nixed due to weight issues for Rahman Jr – who reportedly only lost a solitary pound after agreeing to take the 200lbs clash.
      After learning of his weight issues, the New York State Athletic Commission refused to sanction the bout at under 205lbs.
      Rahman Jr is said to have then revealed he would weigh in at 215lbs and would “pull out” of the fight if he was required to be any lighter.
      An irate Paul fumed on social media: “Hasim Rahman Jr has pulled out of the fight.
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      “This is not a joke, I am devastated, I cannot f***ing believe this, we just found out this news.
      “This is another case of a professional boxer, just like Tommy Fury, being scared to fight me.”
      Paul, 25, is now reportedly targeting a showdown with former world champion kickboxer Andrew Tate – although The Problem Child has yet to publicly campaign for the fight.
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      The YouTuber turned boxer hasn’t set foot inside the ring since his brutal demolition of former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley last December.
      Paul flattened The Chosen One with a vicious overhand right to extend his record to a perfect 5-0.
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      WWE star Bobby Lashley approached to have BARE KNUCKLE fight against boxing legend Mike Tyson

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      WWE superstar Bobby Lashley has reportedly been offered a bareknuckle boxing match with Mike Tyson.The former WWE champion is no stranger to combat sports having competed in mixed martial arts for eight years and racking up a 15-2 record.
      Bobby Lashley was recently offered a bare-knuckle boxing matchCredit: WWE
      Lashley is no stranger to the fight game having competed in MMA for eight yearsCredit: GETTY
      The ex-WWE champion was reportedly offered a fight against boxing great Mike TysonCredit: INSTAGRAM@MIKETYSON
      And the 46-year-old recently claimed a representative from a prominent bare-knuckle boxing promotion approached him about facing Iron Mike at Madison Square Garden later this year.
      Lashley told Fightful Select the talks weren’t formal and were more of a “feeling-out process.”
      According to DAZN reporter Steven Muehlhausen, the promotion in question was Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship.
      He tweeted: “Confirmed: The company that has approached Lashley is Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC).
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      “Lashley has talked with them in the past as has Tyson, but money was a stumbling block then and isn’t the case now.
      “Tyson is back training in the gym with Rafael Cordeiro.”
      Neither Tyson – who returned to the ring in November 2020 – nor BKFC have commented on the report.
      The prospect of sharing the ring with former undisputed heavyweight champion Tyson intrigues former Bellator star Lashley.
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      But he’s under no illusions of the fight being an easy one, saying: “I’m a fighter.
      “Am I out here saying, ‘Yeah, I could go whoop Mike Tyson?’
      “That’d be stupid for me to say, and that would be disrespectful for me to say, so I’m not saying that.
      “I’m just saying that if I had an opportunity to fight Mike Tyson, I would take it 100 per cent,” he told Inside The Ropes.
      “It would be a huge honour to fight Mike Tyson. Look at the upside; if I were to catch ‘Iron Mike’ with a punch to put him down, I’m the greatest person in the world.
      “I’m in movies, I’m everywhere, I’m the biggest sports star in the entire world if that ever happened.”
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      Tyson, 56, made a spectacular return to the ring in November 2020 for an exhibition bout with fellow great Roy Jones Jr.
      Lashley, meanwhile, last competed in mixed martial arts six years ago – defeating Josh Appelt via second-round submission at Bellator 162.
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      Deontay Wilder reveals he’s ‘trying to get back in the groove’ for mega boxing return as he meets UFC champ Ngannou

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      DEONTAY WILDER has revealed he’s trying to “get back” into the swing of things ahead of a potential return to the ring.The Bronze Bomber has slowly but surely been ramping up his training over the last few months after a prolonged break from action.
      Deontay Wilder hasn’t set foot inside the ring since his trilogy fight with Tyson FuryCredit: Getty
      The former WBC heavyweight champion recently returned to the gymCredit: INSTAGRAMMICHAELBOUNTYHUNTER
      Wilder met up with UFC heavyweight champion at the Performance InstituteCredit: TWITTER@FRANCISNGANNOU
      The heavy hitters embraced mid sessionCredit: TWITTER@FRANCISNGANNOU
      And Wilder revealed to Ngannou he’s “trying to get back in the groove”Credit: TWITTER@FRANCISNGANNOU
      Wilder, 35, recently took his training to the UFC’s Performance Institute in Las Vegas – where he met the promotion’s heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou.
      After perching up on the ring apron, Ngannou said to Wilder: “Hey champ.”
      Former WBC heavyweight champion Wilder replied by saying: “What’s up brother?”
      After the pair embraced and shook hands, Ngannou answered: “Not much. How are you?”
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      Wilder responded: “Doing alright. Blessings, blessings, blessings.”
      After Africa’s first UFC heavyweight champ expressed his delight to meet Wilder, the boxer said: “The pleasure is mine.”
      As he made his way off the ring apron, Cameroonian-born Frenchman Ngannou said: “Have a good training.”
      Wilder ended the conversation by saying: “Trying to get back in the groove.”
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      American knockout artist Wilder hasn’t set foot inside the ring since losing his epic trilogy fight with Tyson Fury last October.
      But the Bronze Bomber – who was brutally knocked out in the 11th round of the Sin City showdown – has no plans to hang up his gloves.

      He said: “I can’t stop right here.
      “I must continue my journey. I have to, I have to.
      “I’m looking to resume my career for sure. I’ve got a lot of other things I’ve got to get out of the way.
      “I’m taking away from my children if I come back, because now I’m able to enjoy my life fully like I want to.
      “I sacrificed so much to be in this position in my life, to be able to life my life like I want for the rest of my life.”
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      Jake Paul offered MMA fight debut by PFL as CEO Pete Murray hails ‘ambitious’ YouTuber-turned boxer

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      JAKE PAUL has been offered a route into MMA by the Professional Fighters League. Paul is 5-0 as a boxer but has teased a switch to the cage before, having had a successful high school wrestling career.
      Jake Paul has been offered a route into MMA by the Professional Fighters LeagueCredit: Getty Images – Getty
      Olympic champ Kayla Harrison, boxing legend Mike Tyson and PFL CEO Pete MurrayCredit: Professional Fighters League
      But a debut in the UFC appears off the cards due to the YouTube star’s ongoing feud with Dana White.
      Paul is spoken highly of by Pete Murray, PFL’s CEO who is refusing to close the door on working with the prizefighter one day.
      Murray said on The MMA Hour: “We have a relationship with Jake.
      “And listen, you think about what Jake has built for himself, now as an athlete versus where he came from.
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      “What he’s taken on and the opponents and the platform he’s built, it’s nothing short of impressive.
      “And he’s ambitious, from a business perspective as well as an athlete.
      “And should he want to take on MMA, that’s something that we’d certainly be excited about.”
      The PFL consists of a two-bout regular season, where points are earned per method of victory.
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      Then, the top four in each weight division progresses through to a semis and final format, with eventual victors winning a $1m prize cheque.
      But money is no object for Paul, who made $40m in boxing alone last year.
      He was due to return on Saturday in New York, one day after PFL’s first semi-final of the year.
      But his bout with Hasim Rahman Jr, 31, was cancelled amid a weight disagreement between the two.
      Jake Paul and Hasim Rahman Jr’s fight was cancelledCredit: GETTY More