Conor McGregor and Floyd Mayweather are reportedly in secret talks over a sensational $1 billion rematch to their 2017 super-fight.
UFC superstar McGregor steps into the Octagon this weekend to face Dustin Poirier, while Mayweather is officially retired from boxing. But Mr 50-0 is still finding time to fight a lucrative exhibition with YouTuber Logan Paul in February.
However according to SunSport (which first broke news of Mayweather-McGregor I), the pair are "planning round two".
The duo walked away with eye-watering sums of $280 million (Mayweather) and $130 million (McGregor) after their first fight was a global pay-per-view smash hit, picking up 4.4 million buys in the US alone. But where does the massive $1 billion in prize money come in?
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This is reportedly because this rematch would take place in the Middle East. Heavyweights Anthony Joshua and Andy Ruiz Jr earned huge fees for staging their own rematch in Saudi Arabia, AJ taking home around £100 million for a fight that appealed mainly to a UK PPV audience.
If a country in the Middle East decided to host a Mayweather vs McGregor sequel - featuring the most famous face in MMA and boxing's biggest superstar - then the sums would dwarf that of Joshua vs Ruiz II.
The first fight was won by Mayweather by TKO in the 10th round. However 'The Notorious' surprised many by claiming some of the early rounds before Mayweather took over.
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Whether that was just 'Money May' deliberately making things interesting for the viewer or whether - at 43 years old and no longer fighting regularly - his supreme boxing skills are seriously slipping could be the hook to a potential rematch.
But it's the fame of the two combatants that would really drive the ridiculous prices apparently being discussed.
"The world's biggest watch, whiskey and betting companies will splurge millions in sponsorship deals and adverts, every single blank surface in a 10-mile radius will be expertly branded - for a fee," reports SunSport.
Stuff the undercard with YouTube stars and/or boxing legends and you have a recipe for a global hit, just as Mike Tyson vs Roy Jones turned out to be. Albeit with two athletes far closer to their respective primes.
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McGregor has been vocal about returning to pro boxing and attempting to win a world title, his name being continually linked with Mayweather's great rival, Manny Pacquiao.
But that could just be a ruse to set up a second fight with Mayweather and a record payday, the likes of which neither man will have ever seen before.
Featured Image Credit:Topics: Conor Mcgregor, Boxing News, Boxing, Fight News, Floyd Mayweather, Floyd Mayweather Jr