Although there were many empty seats amid the crowd of 14,623, the bout was expected to surpass the record earnings from Mayweather’s fight against Pacquiao. McGregor was looking to pull in more than $100 million from Saturday’s fight, around half of Mayweather’s projected payday. Mayweather, from Grand Rapids, Mich., grew up in a boxing family, the sport embedded in his DNA. McGregor had a brief experience with boxing as a child before turning to mixed martial arts full time as a teenager. “I couldn’t do any of this without the fans.”And, Mayweather insisted, it was the last time he would do this.

Source: New York Times August 27, 2017 07:18 UTC