Filipino boxing legend Manny Pacquiao has said Ultimate Fighting Championships (UFC) star Conor McGregor stands no chance against undefeated boxing legend Floyd Mayweather in their much-anticipated superfight in Las Vegas on August 26.
The 38-year-old, who is all set to defend his WBO World Welterweight title against undefeated Jeff Horn in Brisbane on July 2, even went on to warn boxing fans not to expect much from the tie, which could be "very boring".
Notably, Pacquiao (59-6-2), who is in the twilight of his career, lost to Mayweather by unanimous decision in what was billed as the "Fight of the Century" in May 2015. Watched on by a crowd of over 16,000 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, the record-breaking bout saw the American boxer tame his Filipino counterpart without letting the latter make use of his devastating punches.
The McGregor-Mayweather match up, which had been in the making for more than a year, is expected to smash all records and become the highest-earning fight of all time. However, Pacquiao believes there is too much hype about nothing and that the mixed martial arts star would not even land a proper punch on his opponent, who has come out of retirement after agreeing for a reported nine-figure payday.
"McGregor has no chance in this fight. In fact, it could be very boring. There is no way he will be able to land a meaningful punch on Floyd [Mayweather]. How could he? He has no professional experience in boxing," Pacquiao said, as quoted by Yahoo Sports.
Not just Pacquiao, but quite a few from the boxing fraternity, including former four-weight world champion Roberto Duran have ridiculed the chances of McGregor pulling off an upset win over Mayweather. However, UFC president Dana White has reportedly said the Dubliner is feeling confident about his chances of doing the impossible on the big day.
McGregor has reportedly hired one of Pacquiao's main sparring partners -- Dashon Johnson -- to prepare for the cross-over fight. The Irish star had a dream year in 2016, which saw him win titles in two different UFC divisions. He signalled his intentions of taking on the boxing great when he obtained a professional boxing license in the state of California in November, last year.
