Joseph Duffy was the first person to defeat Conor McGregor in a professional MMA fight and he has also spent time competing in boxing.
Duffy believes that McGregor’s unorthodox fighting style could prove to be a problem for the much more experienced Mayweather.
“Without a doubt,” Duffy said to MMA Junkie. “Sometimes the hardest guys to fight are the ones that are so unorthodox because, especially from a boxing point of view, they’re hard to train for. Floyd tends to cover all bases, but he might find it hard to find a guy who fights like that. It could definitely unsettle him. These techniques could be applicable and would be something Floyd has never seen, but to work over the course of 12 rounds, probably not. It’s just not a style you could use for the whole fight, so it’s going to be interesting from all angles.”
The lightweight contender just re-signed with the UFC, which means a potential McGregor rematch may be in his future.
Even with the Irishman’s unorthodox style, the lightweight star feels that McGregor can only win if he catches Mayweather just right.
“His time in boxing should help that,” he said. “I don’t think it’s anything he’s doing wrong in his training. Conor is going to have to catch him. With anyone you fight, they have two arms and two legs, so they can always be dropped or stopped. Conor has some sting on his shot but it’s different with smaller gloves, and obviously, Floyd’s defense is impeccable. Floyd is used to seeing these shots coming, and this is his battleground.”
Conor McGregor versus Floyd Mayweather takes place on Saturday, August 26 from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Fightful is providing live coverage of the event, with a post-show podcast to follow.
