Conor McGregor vs Floyd Mayweather Jr. Fight Preview: Former Champ Andre Berto Thinks McGregor Can Beat Mayweather

By Noriel See, Christian Post Contributor Wednesday, August 09, 2017

Famed boxing promoters like Top Rank's Bob Arum and Golden Boy Promotions' Oscar De La Hoya may think that Conor McGregor versus Floyd Mayweather Jr. is just a freak show bout, but a former boxing champion actually believes that the Irishman can beat the undefeated boxing great.

In a recent interview on "The MMA Hour," Andre Berto called McGregor a star who thrives under pressure and he thinks the mixed martial artist can rise to the occasion. He also said McGregor has a legitimate chance to beat Mayweather if he can find a way to make the boxer lower his defenses.

Berto and McGregor are friends, so he's expected to say something like that. However, the former two-time welterweight world champion also admitted that Mayweather may simply outclass McGregor if the Irishman fails to finish him early.

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"It's either Conor catches him early, finishes him or Floyd is gonna outboxing him and makes him look silly and tries to embarrass him," Berto said, via MMA Fighting.

Meanwhile, it appears Mayweather is still trying to build up McGregor's chances of winning in a bid to sell the fight.

In an interview with ESPN's Stephen A. Smith, Mayweather said he has actually lost a step and McGregor should have the advantage over him "on paper" because of the size and age differences between them.

"I'm not the same fighter I was two years ago. I'm not the same fighter I was five years ago. I lost a step. A fighter like Andre Berto isn't even supposed to go the distance with Floyd Mayweather, but remember, I was 38. It's obvious I'm slipping a little bit to even let a fighter like that go the distance with me," Mayweather said, via ESPN.

It's true that McGregor seems to have a lot of advantages, but once the fight starts, the Irish mixed martial artist will have to face a fighter who has been boxing professionally for over 20 years.