Fight fans across Donegal burned the midnight oil well into the small hours to watch ‘The Money Fight’ as Floyd Mayweather defeated Conor McGregor.
It was perhaps a testament to McGregor’s durability for almost ten rounds that Mayweather, retiring from boxing with a perfect 50-0 record, described the Irishman as ‘the right dance partner for my last dance’.
Mayweather goes off into the sunset, his bank balance bulging by an obscene nine-figure sum, after a tenth round stoppage of two-weight UFC champion McGregor at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
McGregor, making his professional boxing debut in one of the richest boxing matches in history, took the opening couple of rounds before Mayweather got to work.
The bout lasted longer perhaps than many believed.
In the tenth round, Mayweather rocked McGregor with three huge right hooks. McGregor was on his feet, but under immense siege from Mayweather when referee Robert Byrd stepped in to call a halt.
Mayweather showed all of his experience and nouse in the middle rounds, though McGregor – gassing badly in the sixth – had his moments.
In the ninth round, Mayweather had McGregor staggering and was grateful to make it back to the stool at the bell.
The end was nigh and Mayweather soon brought it to a close at 1:05 in the tenth stanza.