Conor McGregor's acquisition of a licence to box in California has sparked plenty of talk.
Possible opponents are already lining up, Shane Mosley and Paul Malignaggi among them.
What of McGregor's abilities as a boxer, though? Andy Lee, the former WBO middleweight champion, says that McGregor is probably the best boxer in the UFC. Beyond that, the Limerick man does not rate McGregor's pugilistic skills.
Lee was speaking on Newstalk's Off The Ball during the Sunday paper review.
I wouldn't know about the UFC as a whole. I don't really watch a lot of it. I'm a big fan of Conor McGregor in terms of what he's done as a person. He's crossed over. He's a cultural phenomenon.
The videos I've seen of him sparring - to me, technically, it's not top level. It's not up to scratch. He can fight. He's good with his hands. In terms of boxing, it would be interesting to see if he could win an Irish professional title. That wouldn't be the highest standard in the world but it would be an interesting level.
I don't see him as a top level boxer in any way. With the UFC, he probably is because the level wouldn't be so high.
Lee also said that the UFC lacks both tradition and history.
I was reading a piece by Tommy Conlan a few weeks ago. He was having a dig at McGregor and trying to put the UFC into context and his [McGregor] achievements into context. He started the sport at 18 and is now a two-weight world champion when the likes of Rory McIlroy was swinging a golf club at six-years-old. I started boxing at eight-years-old. The level of dedication and time you have to invest in sports with traditions, sports with history, sports with competition - it's a lot longer. There's a lot more dedication, a lot more investment.
With the UFC, it will come in time as it grows in popularity. There's no tradition in the UFC. There's no history. It's panders to the new generation of kids and people who want instant gratification. Fights don't last that long and they usually end in knockouts. It's the YouTube generation where you can click on something and watch it and skip past the advert. You get your kick, you're out the door and onto the next thing. You're back onto your phone.
It's a good product. That's what people want. That's what people want to consume.
What Lee does have is respect for McGregor's achievements.
He believes that a fight between McGregor and Mayweather would not be competitive but it could be the 'biggest event of all time'.
He's a young lad from Dublin and not so long ago he was on the dole. Now he's making millions. As an Irishman he carries the flag into the ring and I have to take my hat off to him and respect everything he's doing. If he was applying the same acumen in business, you would tip your hat him. We would all be lauding him.
You can listen to Lee on Off The Ball below.
Photo by Joshua Dahl/Sportsfile
