Conor McGregor declares ‘war is on’ after picking sides in Mayweather vs Gotti

Anthony Joshua says Fury clash is fight ‘boxing world needs’

Conor McGregor has picked a side following the fallout of Floyd Mayweather’s shambolic fight with John Gotti III. The exhibition match, which took place at Florida’s FLA Live Arena on Sunday, descended into chaos after referee Kenny Bayliss stopped the fight in the sixth round, infuriating Gotti.

After the defeated fighter lashed out at Mayweather, the ring quickly became flooded with members of both camps as a mass brawl unfolded. That trouble soon spread to the stands where pockets of fights broke out between spectators.

Eventually, the arena needed to be cleared by police, who threatened charges against fans who didn’t leave immediately. A video later posted on social media showed Mayweather saying: “That’s why they pay the big bucks, because I put on a show.”

After the fight, Gotti, who is the grandson of former New York crime lord John Gotti, called Mayweather his “enemy for life” and requested support from returning UFC star McGregor. The Irishman duly responded in a now-deleted Tweet that read: “I back the Gotti’s. The war is on.”

Mayweather and McGregor have faced each other before in a much-hyped crossover boxing match dubbed ‘The Money Fight’ back in August 2017. Mayweather won the bout via technical knockout in the tenth round.

The two competitors have since traded comments both good and bad and have hinted that a rematch could still be on the cards at some point.

But before ‘The Notorious’ can think about taking on boxers of any level, he will first be focused on his long-awaited return to UFC. The former two-division world champion hasn’t fought in the Octogen since breaking his leg against Dustin Poirer in their trilogy fight at UFC 264 in 2021.

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But McGregor recently confirmed that he was returning to UFC’s anti-doping programme ahead of his comeback and he is expected to face former Bellator lightweight champion and fellow ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ coach Michael Chandler before the end of the year.

Mayweather and Gotti’s exhibition match was an unscored bout that will not appear on either fighter’s official record. MMA fighter Gotti was stopped by referee Bayliss in the sixth round for holding and trash-talking incessantly. Unwilling to accept the decision, the 30-year-old kept throwing punches until the ring was flooded with bodies from both teams.

Gotti later wrote on Instagram: “You my enemy for life. [Conor McGregor], we need back up. Bum never put me down or stopped me it was a DQ for no reason.”

Gotti’s father and grandfather – also both named John Gotti – were leaders of the notorious Gambino crime families in New York. Gotti III’s father was in attendance to see his son’s fight against Mayweather.

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