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Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor will wear 8-ounce boxing gloves for their highly anticipated fight on Aug. 26, the Nevada State Athletic Commission announced Wednesday. Mayweather and McGregor requested the smaller size earlier this month instead of the usual 10-ounce gloves in their 154-pound bout. Both fighters submitted a waiver to the NSAC.
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The Nevada commission voted unanimously to approve the one-time exception to its own regulations, which state any boxing match contested above 147 pounds mandates 10-ounce gloves.
In addition, Robert Byrd was named as the referee on Wednesday for the main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The NSAC appointed veteran judges Burt Clements, Dave Moratti and Guido Cavalleri to work the bout.
The 40-year-old Mayweather (49-0, 26 KOs) took to social media earlier this month to say that he was in favor of wearing the 8-ounce gloves.
"I'm telling McGregor, 'Let's fight in 8 oz gloves,'" Mayweather wrote. "McGregor can fight in any brand he prefers or chooses. I'll be wearing 8 oz Grant gloves. Whatever advantage McGregor needs to feel more comfortable in the ring, I'm willing to accommodate."
The 29-year-old McGregor (21-3), who is the UFC's lightweight champion, uses 4-ounce gloves in mixed martial arts bouts. He was quick to respond to the social media post, saying he didn't care about glove size and pointed to Mayweather's "brittle hands."
Neither fighter has competed this year. Mayweather retired from professional boxing after defeating Andre Berto in September 2015 while McGregor bested Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 in November 2016.
