In the 2011 documentary Fightville, UFC veteran Tim Credeur is asked to explain the irresistible, near gravitational, pull boxing and mixed martial arts exert on fighters and lifetime fans. For that question, Credeur had three words.“Fighting,” he said, “is truth.”Promoting fights, however, has never been quite so honest.This week the buzz surrounding a potential showdown between retired boxing megastar Floyd Mayweather and UFC champ Conor McGregor increased in volume and intensity. Media reports citing unnamed sources in McGregor’s native Ireland claimed the fighters had agreed to terms on a boxing match that wouldn’t decide titles, but would generate plenty of attention and revenue.But the truth is that this proposed cross-sport superbout won’t happen. New reports about negotiations, and social media bickering between the pair are best viewed as cynical publicity stunts, cooked up to generate headlines in the absence of actual events. And the fighters themselves are best viewed as promoters who each realize selling real fights later means hyping a fake one now.Mayweather became boxing’s pay-per-view best-seller after a mid-career conversion from good-guy Pretty Boy Floyd to a loudmouth heel character nicknamed Money Mayweather. He successfully peddled the idea that the next opponent could hand him the beating he deserved, and closed his career with a six-fight contract with Showtime guaranteeing him $240 million plus lucrative residuals.A string of domestic assault accusations, along with a conviction in 2011 for hitting his ex-girlfriend, proved Mayweather’s cretin act wasn’t all fabricated. Even if he won’t admit to hitting women, he recognizes the public’s unrequited desire to see him suffer a beating, and the spectre of a McGregor fight appeals to fans who will spend money hoping to see Mayweather lose.It also provides leverage for McGregor, who is the UFC’s biggest ...
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