There will be no world title on the line on Saturday night when Conor McGregor, making his boxing pro debut, will climb into the ring to face huge betting favourite and common sense favourite, Floyd Mayweather Junior. However, there once was a fight, perhaps more derided and ridiculed than the upcoming bout, that saw a man make his pro debut AND challenge for a world title at the same time.
Sixty years ago today, in a fight the great Joe Louis called “the worst mismatch in boxing history,” reigning heavyweight king Floyd Patterson defended his crown against Peter Rademacher. Like McGregor, Rademacher had zero pro bouts to his name, but unlike McGregor, he had won an Olympic gold medal as a boxer. Still, comparisons have been made between this age-old fight and the one we will all watch with curiosity on Saturday night.
Patterson, boxing’s most famous Floyd after Mayweather, received an absolute ton of criticism for agreeing to put his title on the line against such a no-hoper, such a novice. But, quite shockingly, the fight, though largely one-sided, did have one big moment of drama. In the second-round, Rademacher decked Patterson (legend has it causing one stunned fight fan to suffer a heart attack!) and for a few fleeting seconds he appeared to be on the verge of pulling off the upset of upsets.
It was not to be, however, as the embarrassed champ got up, somewhat red-faced, and got busy pounding and punishing his unlikely challenger. In the end, Floyd put his man down seven times, finally finishing him off in round-six. It’s fair to say, though, that the large crowd of over 15,000 got their money’s worth.
Will this prove to be the case on Saturday night? If McGregor manages to deck Mayweather it will prove sensational – even if Floyd gets ups, as Patterson did, and proceeds to punish his disrespectful rival. But will McGregor, even less experienced in terms of The Sweet Science than Rademacher, manage to cause even a brief sensation?
Plenty of fans are betting on McGregor to pull it off and get the big, shocking win, and plenty of fans will be rooting for the MMA star on Saturday. But unlike Rademacher managed against Patterson, McGregor will not get to enjoy even a flashing moment of success that forces the critics to think about having to eat their words.
Patterson never had a good chin, while Mayweather has; and we all know how hard it is for any fighter to tag “Money” cleanly. There will be no heart attacks suffered during this bout.
