Floyd Mayweather Jr. believes Conor McGregor’s rise to superstardom got a major boost after their blockbuster 2017 boxing match, claiming the Irishman took a page out of his showmanship playbook and carried it into the UFC. The undefeated boxing legend has now revisited their iconic showdown, arguing that facing him changed the game for McGregor’s fame, earning power, and overall star status.

Speaking on the PBD Podcast, Mayweather also pushed back against the idea that McGregor is the greatest promoter in combat sports history, suggesting that the former UFC champion picked up his signature promotional style from him.

“The guy that took my whole swag and took it over there to the UFC? As soon as Conor McGregor faced Floyd Mayweather, I mean, he was big as life,” Mayweather said.

The 49-year-old went on to question McGregor’s drawing power and biggest paydays before their showdown, highlighting the financial impact of the fight and the money both men made from it.

“His career wasn’t like that before,” he continued. “What was his biggest payday? What was his biggest fight? So when he got me, what kind of money did he make? I think I made about $300 [million]. I don’t like to count another man’s pocket, but he ate good.”

While Floyd Mayweather credits their 2017 showdown with taking the Irishman’s superstardom to another level, Conor McGregor was already a major force in the UFC long before stepping into the boxing ring.

Their blockbuster clash, dubbed ‘The Money Fight,’ brought together Mayweather, a five-division world champion known for his defensive brilliance, and McGregor, who was making his professional boxing debut. The legendary boxer finally got the 10th-round TKO victory to push his undefeated professional record to 50-0.

But to say that Conor McGregor’s rise to stardom started with ‘Money’ undermines what he had already achieved inside the Octagon.

By 2016, ‘The Notorious’ had knocked out Jose Aldo in just 13 seconds to capture the UFC featherweight title, headlined two major pay-per-view bouts against Nate Diaz, and made history by becoming the promotion’s first simultaneous two-division champion with his victory over Eddie Alvarez for the lightweight championship—all while maintaining his signature swagger.

The fight’s massive purses explain why Floyd Mayweather still points to the fight as a turning point in the Irishman’s career. Official athletic commission filings listed guaranteed purses of $100 million for Floyd Mayweather and $30 million for Conor McGregor.

But those were just the guaranteed figures, with pay-per-view earnings and other commercial deals adding significantly more to both fighters’ payouts. The numbers were staggering. The event reportedly pulled in 4.3 million domestic pay-per-view buys and generated more than $600 million in total revenue, according to figures attributed to broadcaster Showtime.

Mayweather’s overall earnings were estimated at $275 million to $300 million, while McGregor reportedly walked away with around $100 million to $130 million.

For Conor McGregor, the fight was a financial game-changer. Before facing Mayweather, his highest disclosed UFC purse was around $7 million. Walking away with an estimated $100 million or more from a single event put him in an entirely different financial league, giving him the resources to expand his business interests beyond combat sports.

The fight’s success also helped put crossover boxing firmly on the map, showing just how much money could be made when MMA stars stepped into the boxing ring.

In the years that followed, other big names explored the same path. Former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou left the promotion and faced WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury in 2023, while Nate Diaz and Anderson Silva also took on high-profile boxing bouts. In fact, even welterweight champion Islam Makhachev is now open to it.

Despite the staggering success of their first showdown, a rematch has remained out of reach. Nearly a decade later, talk of a second clash still pops up, with reports linking McGregor to a potential boxing return under Dana White’s Zuffa Boxing banner.

But there’s one major hurdle: Dana White hasn’t shown much interest in bringing the blockbuster rivalry back to life.

Dana White addresses the Conor McGregor vs. Floyd Mayweather rematch rumors

Talk of a 2027 rematch between Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor is picking up steam, but Dana White isn’t exactly sold on bringing the blockbuster rivalry back. Despite the money and attention their first fight generated, the UFC boss appears to have little interest in making a sequel happen.

Speculation has resurfaced as ‘The Notorious’ weighs his next move following another lengthy spell away from competition. A potential return to boxing has entered the conversation, with MMA journalists Oscar Willis and Brett Okamoto tipping a possible showdown with Mayweather under White’s Zuffa Boxing banner in 2027.

However, predictions of a rematch are one thing; getting it across the finish line is another.

“Here’s my problem with the Mayweather-McGregor fight,” White told Spinnin Backfist MMA Show. “First of all, the first one, leading into it, I was just like, ‘This is crazy.’

“We’ve seen that fight before. When you talk about the Max Holloway fight, Conor won the fight when they first fought. Max won this fight. You have a trilogy there or whatever. There was nothing about the Mayweather fight that makes me say, ‘You know, if we did that again, there might be a different outcome.'”

White’s reluctance basically comes down to one key factor: he doesn’t see much sporting intrigue in running back a fight that already had a clear winner. From White’s perspective, a second meeting may struggle to offer the same sense of unpredictability.

A potential McGregor-Holloway trilogy, on the other hand, could offer a more compelling storyline. McGregor won their first encounter by decision, but Holloway’s victory in their rematch shifted the rivalry and opened the door for a decisive third chapter.

With their history and unfinished business, a trilogy could give fans a more competitive matchup than another boxing showdown between Conor McGregor and Floyd Mayweather.

So, while the first showdown was a financial juggernaut, Dana White’s stance suggests that massive paydays and nostalgia alone won’t be enough to get him on board. Unless there’s a compelling reason to run it back, the long-awaited sequel may remain just talk.