Mayweather’s 50-0 record should have an asterisk, says Marciano’s son

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Mayweather’s 50-0 record should have an asterisk, says Marciano’s son

AFP

The son of heavyweight legend Rocky Marciano feels the Mayweather-McGregor showdown was only an 'exhibition fight'

MANILA, Philippines – Rocky Marciano Jr, the son of the legendary heavyweight champion of the 1950s, said the 50-0 record of Floyd Mayweather Jr should have an asterisk next to it – because he was facing a boxer making his pro debut.

Mayweather, 40, came out of a two-year retirement on Saturday, August 26 (Sunday, August 27, Manila time) and stopped mixed martial arts fighter Conor McGregor in 10 rounds to break a tie with Marciano for the mythical unblemished 49-0 record, which Marciano retired with in 1955.

Other boxers have at some point surpassed it, like Julio Cesar Chavez Sr at 87-0, but Marciano and Mayweather had retired before being defeated.

“To me, it’s an exhibition fight. I think it definitely should [have an asterisk]. There’s such a big difference from the boxing ring to a UFC octagon, and it’s such a big learning curve,” said Marciano Jr to the New York Post.

“Mayweather’s had an incredible career and he’s had 20 years of greatness, but I would honestly give a boxer who has come up through the amateur ranks, having his first professional fight more of a chance than McGregor.”

Mayweather had retired before but vowed this fight would be his final fight, saying of McGrego, “tonight I chose the right dance partner to dance with.”

Despite a competent early start, McGregor quickly deteriorated as the rounds progressed and Mayweather began systematically breaking him down.

“The fight went pretty much the way I expected it to go. Mayweather would take it slow in the beginning and see what McGregor would throw at him. Mayweather knew that McGregor would tire in the later rounds. If people want to say this is breaking Marciano’s record, sure, it’s disappointing because you want to see him challenged and fight the best he could,” said Marciano Jr.

“If he wants to be the best pound-for-pound fighter of his generation or his weight class, I think as fans of boxing, we want to see people pitted against the best and then see the result, and that’s not what we [got]. There is such a discrepancy in experience. Will they say, ‘Yeah, he got it, but look how he got his 50th win?’ That’s the conversation moving forward.” – Rappler.com

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