Mayweather-McGregor: Best and worst moments of the New York stop
Best of the news conference
There’s something about Conor McGregor and New York news conferences
McGregor took things to an entirely different level in the fashion department as he upstaged his UFC 205 press conference outfit. Eschewing the suits he wore in Toronto and Los Angeles, the Irishman arrived in a mink coat with no shirt underneath, a pair of shades and pink-and-blue patterned pants. Mayweather paled in comparison as he kept it simple with his TMT hoodie, hat and jeans with an expensive chain for decoration. But this time he had the Irish flag draped across his shoulders. Still, this was McGregor’s best moment and he shined.
McGregor’s minions
Once again, the crowd was strongly behind McGregor as a “Pay Your Taxes” chant rang out when the two went face to face. They jeered the mere mention of Showtime and had no patience for anybody other than Conor McGregor speaking on the microphone. They were there to support their fighter but, unfortunately, McGregor couldn’t deliver.
Worst of the news conference
Tardy for the party
After being on their best behavior for Los Angeles and Toronto when it came to starting on time, Mayweather and McGregor went back to their old tardy ways in New York. Originally scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. ET, the two fighters didn’t share the stage until 8:45 p.m. The packed Barclays Center in Brooklyn was visibly exhausted and weren’t too pleased to see Hip-Hop icon Doug E. Fresh try to warm up the crowd after an hour and a half wait.
Conor McGregor finally flops
After going on a tear through the first two cities, McGregor struggled with the New York crowd that was behind him. His attempts to get under his opponent’s skin went nowhere as Mayweather refused to pay the Irishman any attention. With McGregor in his face hurling insults, Mayweather took out his phone and seemingly went on FaceTime with his daughter Yaya. It was evident that the UFC lightweight champion isn’t used to losing a verbal joust and was visibly irritated as he tried to slap Mayweather’s baseball cap off of his head. He also made a poor call by addressing his comments that were racially insensitive. Instead of smoothing things over, they fell flat and were downright cringeworthy. It surely was a rough day at the office and he’ll need to redeem himself in London or risk the tide turning against him.
Out of material?
A four-city tour in four days is a lot for anybody to deal with and proved to be exhausting for Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor. The fatigue was clear as both Mayweather and McGregor recycled lines from their first two stops. However, Mayweather had a little more in the tank as he showered McGregor with money after being insulted that his backpack was relatively empty in Toronto. Things nearly got physical as Mayweather called his legion of large bodyguards to “form like Voltron.” The bodyguards surrounded McGregor and a melee was close to breaking out on stage. But Mayweather was far from the fracas as he strolled away with a wide grin on his face. He’s clearly in Conor McGregor’s head and has somehow managed to turn the people against his Irish foe.
