LAS VEGAS -- The most improbable fight, one between an all-time great in Floyd Mayweather and an opponent, Conor McGregor, making his professional boxing debut, ended in the most probable way.

It ended with a dominant Mayweather stopping an outclassed McGregor by TKO in the 10th round of their massively hyped junior middleweight fight on Saturday night before 14,623 -- well under capacity -- at T-Mobile Arena.

Mayweather, who moved his record to a historic 50-0 with 27 knockouts, said after the fight he would return to retirement.

"This was my last fight tonight. For sure," Mayweather said. "Tonight was my last fight. Tonight I chose the right dance partner to dance with. Conor you are a hell of a champion."

With the victory, Mayweather surpassed the hallowed 49-0 mark that great heavyweight champion Rocky Marciano retired with. It's not a boxing record, but it is revered. There are some who said that beating an opponent with no boxing experience was a disgraceful way to pass Marciano, but Mayweather made no apologies.

"A win is a win, no matter how you get it," said Mayweather, who said during the buildup that he would consider it a failure if he didn't score a knockout. "Rocky Marciano is a legend, and I look forward to going into the Hall of Fame one day."

There was no logical reason to give McGregor, the UFC's 155-pound champion and one of the best mixed martial artists in the world but not a boxer, a chance in a boxing ring, but that didn't stop legions from cheering for the underdog. But in the end it was Mayweather, a five-division world champion and the greatest fighter of his era, whose class shined through after a bit of a slow start, which he said was part of his game plan.

Floyd Mayweather started slow but came on strong before finishing Conor McGregor at 1:05 of the 10th round. Mayweather said afterward that this was his final fight. Mark J. Rebilas/USA TODAY Sports

McGregor (0-1) was the one who dreamed up the fight, which has a chance to break all the combat sports revenue records set by Mayweather-Manny Pacquiao in 2015, when he mentioned during a television interview he was interested in leaving MMA for a fight with Mayweather.

Mayweather, happy in retirement, eventually came around, and the public ate it up. He ended a two-year layoff to make a guaranteed $100 million but likely will make well in excess of $200 million, while McGregor was guaranteed $30 million and likely will earn more than $100 million for a fight that had an irresistible storyline: Could an MMA great cross over to the boxing ring and do the unimaginable?

He couldn't, though he also showed his involvement in the fight was not the joke many said it was. He came to fight, never stopped trying and showed bravery, and he got in a few solid shots in the early going to make things interesting.

"I think we gave the fans what they wanted to see," said Mayweather, who guaranteed before the fight that it would not go the distance. "I owed them for the Pacquiao fight. I had to come straight ahead and give the fans a show. That's what I gave them. He's a lot better than I thought he'd be. He's a tough competitor, but I was the better man tonight."

Punch stats Punches Mayweather McGregor Landed 170 111 Thrown 320 430 Percent 53% 26% -- Courtesy of CompuBox

McGregor gave Mayweather his due.

"He's composed, he's not that fast, he's not that powerful, but boy, is he composed in there," McGregor said. "I thought it was close, though, and I thought it was a bit of an early stoppage. I was just a little fatigued. He was just a lot more composed with his shots. I have to give it to him, that's what 50 pro fights will do for you."

McGregor, a 29-year-old southpaw from Ireland, tried to go after Mayweather in the opening round, but he looked uneasy, and Mayweather moved around to get a good look at him. McGregor landed a couple of shots and put his hands behind his back at one point in a slow-paced round.

The slow pace continued in the second round, but McGregor was moving forward and touching Mayweather, though referee Robert Byrd warned him for hitting behind the head.

Mayweather, 40, of Las Vegas, finally started to get going in the fourth round as he began to land right hands against McGregor, who seemed to begin tiring; his mouth was hanging open. Mayweather also began to target McGregor's body.

Mayweather said the plan he and his father and trainer, Floyd Mayweather Sr., devised was to start slowly.

"Our game plan was to take our time, go to him, let him shoot his shots early and then take him out down the stretch," Mayweather said. "We know in MMA he fights for 25 minutes. After 25 minutes, he started to slow down. I guaranteed to everybody that this wouldn't go the distance.

Floyd Mayweather scored his first knockout since 2011, when he stopped Victor Ortiz in the fourth round of their welterweight title fight. Christian Petersen/Getty Images

"I want to thank all the fans from Ireland and all the fans around the world for coming to see this event. I couldn't do any of this without the fans."

It was Mayweather's first knockout since he stopped Victor Ortiz in the fourth round of a welterweight title fight in 2011. McGregor said he was disappointed that Byrd stopped the fight when he did.

"I've been strangled on live TV and came back," McGregor said, referring to his submission loss and decision victory against Nate Diaz in 2016. "When you're in here in the squared circle, everything is different. Let the man put me down. That's fatigue, that's not damage. Where was the final two rounds? Let me walk back to my corner and compose myself."

In the sixth round, Mayweather began to land hard head shots that pushed McGregor back. His face was beginning to show redness from the punches, but the heavily pro-McGregor crowd was not deterred as it began to chant, "Conor! Conor!"

Mayweather landed a right hand in the seventh round that snapped McGregor's head straight back. He continued to land crisp punches, whereas the shots McGregor landed didn't appear to have much steam on them.

McGregor went straight at Mayweather to open the ninth round and had to be pulled off his back by Byrd. But the rest of the round was all Mayweather, who laid punishment on him with an assortment of clean right hands, one of which swiveled McGregor's head. Later in the round, Mayweather landed brutal combinations against an exhausted McGregor, who showed enormous heart but was outclassed.

In the 10th round, McGregor had nothing left. Mayweather landed a huge right hand that nearly knocked him down, and he then continued the assault, landing about a dozen unanswered punches. McGregor was barely on his feet, and Byrd jumped in and stopped the fight at 1 minute, 5 seconds.

At the time of the stoppage, Mayweather led 89-82, 89-81 and 87-83 on the judges' scorecards.

Mayweather landed 170 of 320 punches (53 percent), according to CompuBox statistics, and McGregor landed 111 of 430 (26 percent). McGregor's punch output dropped dramatically in the ninth and 10th rounds when he was getting hammered, but he acquitted himself well.

Perhaps it was his age or the long layoff, but Mayweather, known for his defensive brilliance, got hit a bit more than usual. Nine Mayweather opponents landed less than 100 punches in a 12-round fight -- including Pacquiao, who landed 81 -- but McGregor landed 111 in 10 rounds.

Mayweather, however, said he fought exactly as he had planned.

"Our game plan was to go straight ahead," Mayweather said. "I said numerous times that I wouldn't back down, and that's what I did."</s>Boxing - Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs Conor McGregor - Las Vegas, USA - August 26, 2017 Floyd Mayweather Jr. looks up at the big screen after winning the fight REUTERS/Steve Marcus

LAS VEGAS (Reuters) - A ruthless Floyd Mayweather scored a 10th round technical knockout over mixed martial arts champion Conor McGregor on Saturday, cementing his legacy as one of boxing's all-time greats.

McGregor, making his professional boxing debut, had boasted he would knock out the 40-year-old American early but his lack of ring savvy betrayed him as Mayweather improved to 50-0 to surpass heavyweight great Rocky Marciano's 49-0 record for most wins without a loss or draw.

Whether the megafight will be the richest of all-time, as promoters predicted, is still to be determined but Mayweather left no doubt of his place in the pantheon of boxing greats in what he said was his last fight.

As promised, McGregor came out full of fury and menace but Mayweather, long regarded as the finest defensive fighter to step into the ring, left few openings and used the first three rounds to feel out his opponent.

By the fourth round Mayweather went on the attack and started landing blow after blow against a suddenly desperate McGregor who was bravely hanging on while clutching and grabbing the American.

In the 10th, Mayweather moved in for kill pinning a visibly fatigued McGregor against the ropes and landing a flurry of punches when the referee stepped in to stop the fight.</s>In a result that shocked few, Floyd Mayweather Jr. defeated Conor McGregor by technical knockout before a crowd of 14,623 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday.

McGregor, though, surprised many by going toe to toe with Mayweather until the 10th round.

“He’s a lot better than I thought he was,” Mayweather said after the bout.

Mayweather’s record is now 50-0, surpassing Rocky Marciano, who went 49-0. After Saturday’s win, Mayweather said this was the final fight of his career, calling McGregor “a hell of a champion.”

“A win is a win, no matter how you get it,” Mayweather said. “Rocky Marciano is a legend, and I look forward to going into the Hall of Fame one day.”

Living up to the hype

The only certainty of this fight was that it would be a spectacle not seen before. It lived up to the hype.

Two different sports worlds collided into a 12-round junior middleweight boxing match: Mayweather, considered one of the best defensive boxers of all time, coming out of retirement at age 40, his last fight a unanimous decision victory over Andre Berto on September 12, 2015. McGregor, 29, is the current UFC lightweight champion and the most exciting draw in mixed martial arts today — but it was his first professional boxing match.

It was billed as the first boxing-UFC crossover bout in history. It pitted youth vs experience. But it was a boxing fight with boxing rules, meaning McGregor couldn’t kick or wrestle like he would in a UFC bout.

The speculation in the weeks leading up to the fight undeniably had Mayweather — who hasn’t lost since 1996 in the Olympics when he was an amateur — as the heavy favorite. Heading into Saturday night, boxing aficionados viewed the fight as a joke.

It was no joke.

McGregor came out aggressive, throwing several punches in the first three rounds. Mayweather controlled the next three rounds, and it was close to an even fight through six.

But McGregor was running out of steam, and Mayweather took advantage, landing several blows on the exhausted Irishman in the 10th round.

Mayweather landed more punches than McGregor, 130-60, in rounds six through 10 after McGregor had a 51-40 edge in the first five rounds.

“Our game plan was to take our time, go to him, let him shoot his shots early and then take him out down the stretch,” Mayweather said. “We know in MMA he fights for 25 minutes. After 25 minutes, he started to slow down. I guaranteed to everybody that this wouldn’t go the distance.”

McGregor said he thought it was an early stoppage by the referee.

“I get a little wobbly when I’m tired,” he said. “But get me in the corner and I’ll recover and I’ll come back. There’s a lot on the line here — he should have let me keep going until I hit the floor. I was just a little fatigued. (Mayweather) was a lot more composed, especially in the later parts of the fight.”

When asked if he would box again, McGregor said, “I don’t know. I’m having a ball.”

Will he return to UFC? “Of course,” he said.

Stars turning out for the spectacle

This was hardly viewed as a matchup against equals in the boxing ring. Sure, McGregor has held UFC championships in two weight classes. But the sheer thought of McGregor knocking out the veteran Mayweather felt borderline absurd.

Additionally, the lead-up to the bout had a disturbing dark side.

The two fighters embarked on a four-city media tour this summer spanning the United States, Canada and England. Though there were no physical blows at those, Mayweather, who has a record of domestic violence, and McGregor exchanged verbal jabs full of profanity, racism, homophobia and misogyny.

Yet, despite the hatred on full display by both men, fans and celebrities expressed interest in this fight. The stars were out in full force Saturday at T-Mobile Arena, including LeBron James, Mike Tyson, Jennifer Lopez, Alex Rodriguez, Bruce Willis, Jamie Foxx, Olivia Munn, William H. Macy, Don Cheadle, Jeremy Piven, Nick Cannon and Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne. Earlier this summer, estimates of 10,000 fans attended the media tour in Los Angeles. There were 15,000 in Toronto, 13,000 in New York and another 10,000 in London.

And maybe the thought of McGregor pulling off the unthinkable was a reason why people shelled out $99.95 to watch the fight on pay-per-view in the United States. But not all viewing went smoothly. According to Showtime Sports, there were reports of “scattered outages” from various cable and satellite providers and the online offering. Showtime Sports delayed the start of the main event slightly to allow for systems to get on track. It was a short delay.

But after all that jawing and waiting, did it really matter who won? Both fighters are expected to leave the ring with hefty paydays. According to CNNMoney, industry experts have speculated that the fight could surpass $500 million, which was a record set by the Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao fight in 2015.</s>LAS VEGAS — Floyd Mayweather Jr. figured out a 50th opponent, letting Conor McGregor have the early rounds before stalking him late and leaving the mixed martial artist defenceless and exhausted on the ropes.

Mayweather battered McGregor around the ring in the later rounds, finally stopping him at 1:05 of the 10th round Saturday night with a flurry of punches that forced referee Robert Byrd to stop the fight.

Before a pro-McGregor crowd that roared every time the UFC star landed a punch, Mayweather methodically broke him down after a slow start to score his first real stoppage in nearly a decade. He did it in what he said would be his final fight, against a fighter who had never been in a professional boxing match.

McGregor boxed surprisingly well early. But after landing some shots in the first three rounds, his punches seemed to lose their steam, and Mayweather went on the pursuit. McGregor backpedaled most of the way, stopping only to throw an occasional flurry as Mayweather wore him down.

"I think we gave the fans what they wanted to see," Mayweather said. "I owed them for the (Manny) Pacquiao fight."

McGregor had vowed to knock Mayweather out within two rounds, and he won the early rounds with movement and punches to the head. But the tide of the fight turned in the fourth round as Mayweather seemed to figure out what he had to do and began aggressively stalking McGregor.

"I turned him into a Mexican tonight," McGregor said. "He fought like a Mexican."

In a fight so intriguing that it cost $10,000 for ringside seats, McGregor turned in a respectable performance for someone in his first fight. But Mayweather’s experience and his ring savvy paid off as he executed his game plan to perfection.

"Our game plan was to take our time, go to him and take him out in the end," Mayweather said. "I guaranteed everybody this fight wouldn’t go the distance."

Mayweather was widely criticized for not going after Pacquiao in their megafight, and he didn’t make the same mistake this time. In a fight that could make him $200 million he seemed to stagger McGregor with a series of punches in the ninth round, then came back in the 10th eager to finish it off.

McGregor went over and hugged Mayweather. He seemed almost happy in the ring afterward, secure that he had given a good performance even in losing.

"I was a little fatigued," he said. "He was composed in there, that’s what 50 pro fights can give you."

Mayweather ran his record to 50-0, surpassing Rocky Marciano’s 49-0 record and giving himself a great parting gift. He repeated afterward that he was not going to fight again.

"This is my last fight for sure. 50-0 sounds good, I’m looking forward to going into the Hall of Fame," Mayweather said. "I picked the best dance partner to do it with."

Irish fans arrived by the thousands in the days before the fight, filling the arena for the weigh-in and boisterously cheering for their man. They even went off in the middle of the night and spray painted an Irish flag and "49-1" on a billboard on Interstate 15 promoting Mayweather’s businesses.

The capacity crowd at the arena cheered McGregor on, but they quieted as the fight progressed and Mayweather showed his dominance.</s>In a result that shocked few, Floyd Mayweather Jr. defeated Conor McGregor by technical knockout at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday.

McGregor, though, surprised many by going toe to toe with Mayweather until the 10th round.

“He’s a lot better than I thought he was,” Mayweather said after the bout.

Mayweather’s record is now 50-0, surpassing Rocky Marciano, who went 49-0. After Saturday’s win, he said this was the final fight of his career.

The only certainty of this fight was that it would be a spectacle not seen before.

Two different sports worlds collided into a 12-round junior middleweight boxing match: Mayweather, considered one of the best defensive boxers of all time, coming out of retirement at age 40. McGregor, 29, is the current UFC lightweight champion and the most exciting draw in mixed martial arts today — but it was his first professional boxing match.

It was billed as the first boxing-UFC crossover bout in history. It pitted youth vs experience. But it was a boxing fight with boxing rules, meaning McGregor couldn’t kick or wrestle like he would in a UFC bout.

The speculation in the weeks leading up to the fight undeniably had Mayweather — who hasn’t lost since 1996 in the Olympics when he was an amateur — as the heavy favorite. Heading into Saturday night, boxing aficionados viewed the fight as a joke.

It was no joke.

McGregor came out aggressive, throwing several punches in the first three rounds. Mayweather controlled the next three rounds, and it was an even fight through six.

But McGregor was running out of steam, and Mayweather took advantage, landing several blows on the exhausted Irishman in the 10th round.

“Our game plan was to take our time, go to him, let him shoot his shots early and then take him out down the stretch,” Mayweather said. “We know in MMA he fights for 25 minutes. After 25 minutes, he started to slow down. I guaranteed to everybody that this wouldn’t go the distance.”

McGregor said he thought it was an early stoppage by the referee.

“I was just a little fatigued,” he said. “(Mayweather) was just a lot more composed with his shots.”

This was hardly viewed as a matchup against equals in the boxing ring. Sure, McGregor has held UFC championships in two weight classes. But the sheer thought of McGregor knocking out the veteran Mayweather was borderline absurd.

Additionally, the lead-up to the bout had a disturbing dark side.

The two fighters embarked on a four-city media tour this summer spanning the United States, Canada and England. Though there were no physical blows at those, Mayweather, who has a record of domestic violence, and McGregor exchanged verbal jabs full of profanity, racism, homophobia and misogyny.

Yet, despite the hatred on full display by both men, fans and celebrities expressed interest in this fight. The stars were out in full force Saturday at T-Mobile Arena, including LeBron James, Mike Tyson, Jennifer Lopez, Alex Rodriguez, Bruce Willis, Jamie Foxx, Olivia Munn, William H. Macy, Don Cheadle, Jeremy Piven, Nick Cannon and Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne. Earlier this summer, estimates of 10,000 fans attended the media tour in Los Angeles. There were 15,000 in Toronto, 13,000 in New York and another 10,000 in London.

And maybe the thought of McGregor pulling off the unthinkable was a reason why people shelled out $99.95 to watch the fight on pay-per-view in the United States. But not all viewing went smoothly. According to Showtime Sports, there were reports of “scattered outages” from various cable and satellite providers and the online offering. Showtime Sports delayed the start of the main event slightly to allow for systems to get on track. It was a short delay.

But after all that jawing and waiting, did it really matter who won? Both fighters are expected to leave the ring with hefty paydays. According to CNNMoney, industry experts have speculated that the fight could surpass $500 million, which was a record set by the Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao fight in 2015.</s>LAS VEGAS >> Boxing people hated the idea. UFC types were hopeful their man could catch lightning in a bottle.

Floyd Mayweather Jr. on Saturday started slowly, but he went on to pulverize UFC star Conor McGregor over the final few rounds of their bout, stopping McGregor at 1:05 of the 10th in front of about 16,000 at T-Mobile Arena. The junior middleweight bout was slated for 12 rounds.

“He was a tough competitor, but I was the better man tonight,” said Mayweather, who has said he will retire after this fight at age 40. “I told everyone this wasn’t going the distance.”

Mayweather did very little offensively through the first three rounds, as McGregor pecked away with soft right jabs and left crosses, none of which had any telling effect.

Mayweather began to pick it up and he landed several solid right crosses to the head of McGregor in the sixth.

There was more of that in the seventh. One right hand snapped back McGregor’s head.

Several times, McGregor, 29, would spin Mayweather around. One time in the sixth, he did that and continued to punch Mayweather as he hugged Mayweather from behind. It took referee Robert Byrd a while to put a stop to that.

Other times, when the fighters became tied up, McGregor would punch down on Mayweather’s head.

When Byrd was trying to admonish McGregor for another of his moves in the ninth, Mayweather walked toward the conversation and McGregor punched him in the face.

Mayweather went on to land several vicious punches to the head of McGregor in that round, once staggering McGregor with a right cross to the head. At this point, McGregor seemed totally gassed.

Mayweather (50-0, 27 KOs) weighed 149 1/2 pounds Friday, well under the 154-pound limit. McGregor weighed 153. He was expected to rehydrate to at least 165. Duriing a pre-fight interview with Showtime, he said he did not weigh himself Saturday, but that he was “comfortable.”

McGregor, who made his pro boxing debut, was obviously the bigger man.

Mayweather’s guaranteed purse was $100 million, but he could make in excess of $200 million with pay-per-view upside. McGregor is guaranteed $30 million, and his biggest purse in UFC is $3 million. He, too, figures to make millions more after the pay-per-view money is distributed.

Mayweather entered the bout knowing that a victory would allow him to retire with a record of 50-0, surpassing the 49-0 mark of late heavyweight champion Rocky Marciano.

It should be noted, though, that Marciano knocked out 13 of his final 14 opponents. Mayweather entered this fight hot having won by knockout since 2011.

Mayweather had not fought since September 2015, when he defended his two welterweight titles with a unanimous-decision victory over Andre Berto at MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

Super featherweight champion Gervonta Davis of Baltimore entered his title defense against Francisco Fonseca of Costa Rica with an outstanding record of 18-0 with 17 knockouts.

Davis (19-0, 18 KOs), for the most part, lived up to that record as he knocked out Fonseca in the eighth round. The final punch ended up going behind Fonseca’s head. Fonseca grabbed the back of his head while on his hands and knees and did not rise before the count of 10. The time was 39 seconds.

Fans booed Fonseca, then Davis as he was being interviewed in the ring. Davis had landed some telling blows leading to what could have been ruled an illegal punch. Fonseca had his moments, and he said he wanted a rematch.

“It was an illegal blow,” Fonseca said.

Davis believes Fonseca tried to take advantage of something that wasn’t quite there.

“I guess the camera didn’t show the right clip of me catching him,” he said. “I actually caught him with a body blow before that punch. It hurt him, and he knew he was hurt so took advantage of me swinging and fell down.”

Davis apparently likes to clown. At one point in the fourth round, he put his hands behind his back, daring Fonseca to hit him. Not long after, Fonseca did just that, much to the delight of the crowd.

Former cruiserweight champion Steve Cunningham, 41, of Philadelphia, took on a much younger Andrew Tabiti for a regional title.

It might be time for Cunningham (29-9-1) to hang up his gloves because he was defeated via unanimous decision by scores of 97-93, 97-93 and 100-90.

Tabiti, of Las Vegas via Chicago, is now 15-0. He is 27, 14 years Cunningham’s junior.

“I was just jabbing him and making sure I stayed smart,” Tabiti said. “He’s a veteran, so I had to stay composed. I wanted to show that I could box.”

Cunningham was trying to make Tabiti fight in the 10th, but Tabiti was content to stay away, perhaps knowing Cunningham could only win by knockout by that time.

“I don’t think Andrew Tabiti is a championship-level fighter,” he said. “I thought I won the fight. I didn’t think I saw anything special from him.”</s>Floyd Mayweather beat Irishman Conor McGregor by way of technical knockout in the 10th round of their much-hyped megafight early Sunday morning to keep his perfect record intact.

According to Reuters, Mayweather, who came out of retirement at 40 for the fight, improved to 50-0 to surpass heavyweight great Rocky Marciano’s 49-0 record for most wins without a loss or draw.

McGregor, a mixed martial arts champion who was making his professional boxing debut, failed to pull off what would have been the greatest upset in combat sports history but made the fight much more compelling than most experts had predicted.</s>LAS VEGAS — Floyd Mayweather withstood an impressive early flurry from Conor McGregor to convincingly win Saturday night’s “Money Fight” at T-Mobile Arena with a 10th round technical knockout.

Mayweather, the former top ranked pound-for-pounder in boxing, experienced a few difficulties in the opening rounds against McGregor, who was moving over from his position as the biggest star in the Ultimate Fighting Championship and making his debut inside the ring.

However, in Round 10, with McGregor having visibly started to tire minutes earlier, Mayweather deliver a telling combination that ended the fight, with referee Robert Byrd stepping in to prevent any further punishment.

“He’s a tough competitor and I think we gave the fans what they deserved to see," Mayweather said after the fight.

By then, it had already gone further than many expected. In the build-up to the much-hyped event, Mayweather promised to come forward and seek an early knockout. Ultimately, he took his usual risk-averse strategy in the opening rounds, not throwing a meaningful punch until 55 seconds into the fight.

However, while that gave some moments of excitement to the Irishman’s followers, it also left McGregor gassed, with his mouth open and his punches lacking snap.

“He’s a lot better than I thought he was," Mayweather said. "He used a lot of angles. But I was the better man tonight.

“Our game plan was to take our time. … Then take him out at the end.”

By the 10th, McGregor barely had enough energy to stand, let alone throw punches and Mayweather moved in for the finish.

“I guaranteed everybody this fight wouldn’t go the distance. Boxing’s reputation was on the line,” Mayweather said.

Mayweather’s victory took his professional career statistics to 50-0, one clear of the record held by Rocky Marciano. Many, however, will question whether those figures should come with an asterisk, given the obvious and vast gulf in quality and experience between himself and McGregor.

Regardless, at 40, and having secured another enormous payday, it is unlikely Mayweather will be seen in the ring again, and he even penned a farewell letter to his fans in the fight program.

“This was my last fight tonight, ladies and gentlemen. For sure," Mayweather said after his victory.

McGregor had promised his unorthodox style would provide Mayweather with a tougher challenge than any he had previously faced. Ultimately though, McGregor’s lack of boxing prowess shined through.

More: A-list celebrities flock to see Mayweather vs. McGregor

“I thought it was close, and I though the stoppage was a little early," McGregor said after the fight. "…The ref should have let me keep going. I was just a little fatigued.”

Mayweather was fighting for the first time since beating Andre Berto in 2015 and feared in the lead-up to the contest if his time away would slow him down. It didn’t matter. This was always going to be an experiment and the answer was clear — boxing and mixed martial arts are two different sports, and expertise at one of them does not guarantee success at the other.

“I’ve been here before," McGregor said. "I’ve been strangled on TV and come back. … I thought I was close.”

McGregor’s loud insistence that he was poised to become the new “face of boxing” now seems a little foolish, although big nights and sizeable paychecks await him on his return to the UFC.

Will McGregor box again? "I don't know. We'll see," he said.</s>Floyd Mayweather Jr. picked up the 50th win of his illustrious career, defeating Conor McGregor by 10th-round TKO on Saturday night in Las Vegas' T-Mobile Arena.

With the victory, Mayweather surpasses Rocky Marciano, who retired in 1956 with a 49-0 record.

McGregor more than held his own in what was his first professional boxing fight, but the gulf between him and Mayweather grew the longer the fight went on.

After the bout reached the halfway point, McGregor began looking visibly fatigued and Mayweather sensed an opening. He showed a level of aggression rarely seen in his previous 49 victories. According to SHO Stats, Mayweather had landed 132 punches compared to 80 for McGregor entering the 10th round.

In the 10th round, Mayweather really went on the offensive, and McGregor had no answer for the barrage. After Mayweather landed a series of blows without reply from McGregor, referee Robert Byrd called for the bell.

Mayweather told Showtime Sports' Jim Gray he had underestimated McGregor's abilities coming into the night, per UFC's official Twitter account:

Mayweather also appeared to shut the door on stepping in the ring again, saying this was his last fight, per BBC Sport.

Many expected Mayweather to beat McGregor, with the biggest question being whether the fight would last the full 12 rounds. Mayweather's last knockout was against Victor Ortiz in 2011.

Although McGregor is UFC's lightweight champion, he was clearly overmatched against somebody who's one of the best defensive boxers in history. The likes of Manny Pacquiao, Canelo Alvarez, Miguel Cotto and Oscar De La Hoya have all tried to take down Mayweather and failed. McGregor stood little chance in what was his boxing debut.

Saturday's fight wasn't about putting on a competitive matchup in the ring. Instead, it offered Mayweather what's likely to be one more massive payday and granted McGregor the opportunity to earn more from one night than he had over the entirety of his UFC career to date.

ESPN.com's Darren Rovell projected in June Mayweather vs. McGregor could gross a little over $606 million. The two fighters signed a confidentiality agreement, so their full earnings are unlikely to ever be revealed, but ESPN.com's Dan Rafael reported Mayweather will take home a purse of at least $100 million, while McGregor will make a minimum of $30 million.

From an aesthetic perspective, Mayweather's victory over Pacquiao in May 2015 was disappointing, but it was a massive financial success for the pair of stars.

Rovell and Rafael reported Mayweather took home between $220 million and $230 million, while Pacquiao earned $150 million, which was to be divided among he and Top Rank founder Bob Arum.

As long as Saturday's pay-per-view meets its revenue expectations, it's doubtful either Mayweather or McGregor will walk away regretting his involvement.

If anything, the two may consider a rematch.</s>Floyd Mayweather improved his unbeaten boxing record to 50-0 with a TKO (technical knockout) win over Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) star Conor McGregor on Saturday night, as the most anticipated boxing match in years delivered the result that most expected, but also delivered on entertainment.

Referee Robert Byrd called an end to the fight in the 10th round after McGregor ate several precise blows from Mayweather, having been saved by the bell in the 9th round.

McGregor, a mixed martial arts superstar making his professional boxing debut, started strongly, landing more strikes in the early going, using his reach advantage and unorthodox movement to good effect.

The 28-year-old also attempted to unsettle Mayweather by way of roughhousing tactics and illegal hammer-fist strikes to the back of the head.

But, as has been the case for most of Mayweather’s fights in recent years, those early rounds were but an opportunity for him to size up his opponent.

As the bout progressed, the American, widely regarded as the finest defensive boxer in the history of the sport, began to let his class shine through, his famously evasive defensive movements and precise attacks beginning to wear on McGregor, who resorted to clinching Mayweather to catch the occasional breather.

Rounds seven to nine were utterly dominated by Mayweather, who began to walk down McGregor and land punches at will.

McGregor began to visibly fatigue in Round 9, stumbling at times and barely managing to survive the round.

Round 10 turned out to be the last of the much-hyped superfight, with the referee halting the bout after Mayweather landed a flurry of unanswered punches on his beleaguered rival.

After the fight, McGregor paid tribute to Mayweather, but insisted that the referee stopped the contest prematurely.

For his part, Mayweather, 40, praised McGregor for providing a stiffer challenge than he — and most boxing purists — expected.

“He’s a lot better than I thought he was, he used different angles, but I was the better man. It was our game plan to take our time and take him out down the stretch,” said Mayweather, who now surpasses heavyweight great Rocky Marciano’s longstanding 49-0 record.

The 40-year-old also confirmed that the fight heralded his retirement from the sport he has dominated for a generation.
In boxing, Floyd Mayweather Jr. defeats mixed martial artist Conor McGregor in the 10th round by technical knockout to improve to 50–0, breaking Rocky Marciano's 61-year-old record.