UFC President Dana White has backed Conor McGregor to become an even bigger star than boxing sensation Floyd Mayweather Jr.
The fighting Irishman will face Jose Aldo at UFC 194 on Saturday in one of the most highly anticipated events in the brand's history. White, quoted by Martin Domin of the MailOnline, suggested this is only the beginning for McGregor and has backed him to go on to achieve sporting superstardom:
The first time I met him, he came to Vegas and we went to dinner together. When I left the dinner, I called my partner Lorenzo Frattita and said 'I don't know if this guy can fight but if he can even throw a punch, he's going to be the biggest star ever.'
Yeah [he can be bigger than Mayweather]. I mean, he is our Floyd Mayweather. If you look at is [sic] style and his approach, the talk, the brashness, the things that are said.
The cars, the McMansion, the bus to Vegas. He's definitely a huge star.
Floyd Mayweather really blew up when the [Manny] Pacquiao fight happened. The whole world was talking about that fight. Conor has become very big, very quickly.
McGregor may not have reached those standards quite yet, but he's certainly well on his way. As a general rule, MMA finds itself years behind boxing in widespread popularity despite the massive strides that have been made by the UFC in recent years.
According to Domin, UFC 194 will set a record gate of $9 million (£6 million) for the brand, which is another massive indicator of its progress.
But the aforementioned bout between Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao pulled in a remarkable 4.4 million pay-per-view buys, nearly double the highest amount for any boxing bout previously, per Showtime (h/t Scott Christ of Bad Left Hook). Domin notes McGregor's last fight, against Chad Mendes at UFC 189, estimated around 1 million sales.
McGregor admitted himself there is still some work to be done before he's considered alongside the boxer, who retired earlier this year having won all 49 of his professional fights. However, the Irishman was also adamant he can achieve more than Mayweather did.
"What Floyd has done, he deserves credit for that," said McGregor, per Kevin Iole of Yahoo. "But I'm breaking records at an age when people were still trying to figure out who he was. When I'm done, forget about it. There will be no comparison."
Although it's an annoyance of MMA fans and boxing supporters to compare competitors from those respective disciplines, there are some clear similarities when it comes Mayweather and McGregor. Each has a divisive personality and is fiercely ambitious beneath the bravado, and neither has any shame admitting he enjoys the material things in life.
As we can see here, courtesy of UFC Europe, McGregor was in a serious mood when he came face-to-face with Aldo just days before their bout:
Jose Aldo and Conor McGregor face off at the #UFC194 presser!! Don’t miss this one on Saturday night!! https://t.co/GH2OG4nh5t
— UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) December 9, 2015
They both know how to promote a fight superbly, too. As Bleacher Report's Jonathan Snowden noted recently, the upcoming bout with Aldo has been built up brilliantly by the UFC, with McGregor playing a critical role:
Seen a lot of fights in my day. I've never seen a promotion this strong. This McGregor vs. Aldo fight is EVERYTHING. Props to Conor #UFC194
— Jonathan Snowden (@JESnowden) December 8, 2015
Even so, McGregor and the UFC have a long way to go before they can match the numbers posted by Mayweather, whom Forbes named as the richest athlete on the planet this year. They are definitely moving in the right direction, though, with men like McGregor surging to the top of the sport and capturing the attention of casual sports fans.
For the sake of the brand, a win for the Irishman would do wonders. Granted, Aldo is a tenacious competitor and a brilliant champion, but having an effervescent figure at the peak of the sport like McGregor could potentially push the UFC on even further. If McGregor has a legacy like Mayweather's in mind for himself, it's vital his hand is raised Saturday.
