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| Isaac Brekken/AP |
By Ariel Clarito
MANILA--The fight that experts and fans alike thought would be nothing more than a mere spectacle turned out to be more competitive that anyone ever expected.
That was until Money decided to turn up the heat and show "The Notorious" who the undisputed king of the ring is.
Floyd Mayweather claimed victory number 50, breaking the 49-0 record held by heavyweight legend Rocky Marciano by winning over reigning UFC Lightweight Champion Conor McGregor via 10th round technical knockout.
The bout which was scheduled for 12 rounds was predicted to be a mismatch as it pitted an undefeated Mayweather, widely regarded as the best defensive fighter of this generation, against McGregor who was making his professional boxing debut.
But Mayweather, who has been known to be a slow starter, allowed the UFC champion some moments to showcase his wares in the first three rounds which McGregor, by being the busier fighter, won in one of the judges' scorecard.
Having sized up the bigger McGregor and probably realizing he could take the Irishman's best punches, Mayweather started to take more chances by opening up and letting his hands go.
Money Mayweather regained control of the fight beginning the fourth round. He started to land with more frequency and accuracy as the fight wore on.
McGregor, on the other hand, would land occasionally but could not seem to muster enough power from his wide-stanced punches to hurt Mayweather or at the very least keep Mayweather off balance.
Mayweather also put on display his vaunted defense as he made McGregor miss and expend more energy than necessary.
McGregor seemed to have found his second wind in the eighth round as his work rate increased.
He managed to mount some offense to stymie Mayweather who had shown more aggressiveness in Rounds 4-7 of this fight compared to all of his last 10 fights.
But Mayweather's big time boxing experience would carry him through as he not only got past McGregor's onslaught, but he also started to connect with more solid punches which would land consistently flush on McGregor's chin.
The constant pounding from Mayweather began to take its toll on McGregor whose legs started to betray him beginning the ninth round which he barely survived.
Getting to the 10th round of a fight was unfamiliar territory for McGregor, a fact not lost on Mayweather who went for the kill in the 10th round which prompted referee Robert Byrd to call a stop to the fight after a fatigued McGregor was pinned practically defenseless on the ropes.
At the end of Round 9, judge Dave Moretti had it 87-83, Burt Clements scored it 89-82, and Guido Cavalleri's score was 89-81, all for Mayweather.
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