Floyd Mayweather has confirmed that he has officially come out of retirement to fight Conor McGregor and has set a deadline to arrange their prospective super-fight.

The five-division world champion, considered to be the best boxer of his generation, has not fought since equalling Rocky Marciano’s 49-0 record with victory over Andre Berto in September 2015.

However, a lucrative return to the ring between Mayweather and mixed martial artist McGregor, the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s (UFC) lightweight reigning champion, has been mooted since early last year.

UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Show all 28 1 /28 UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Conor McGregor walks out of UFC 205 the first simultaneous two-weight world champion. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez McGregor celebrates his KO win over Eddie Alvarez UFC 205 to hold the lightweight and featherweight titles. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez McGregor became the first man to hold two different belts in UFC history. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez McGregor continues to set the benchmark in the UFC. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Referee John McCarthy waves off the main event after Alvarez is floored for a fourth time. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez McGregor utilised his left hook counter to floor Alvarez three times in the first round. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez McGregor taunted Alvarez by holding back hands behind his back and urging him to throw a punch. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Alvarez had no answer for McGregor's speed and power. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Tyron Woodley vs Stephen Thompson Tyron Woodley retained his welterweight title by majority draw against Stephen Thompson. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Tyron Woodley vs Stephen Thompson Thompson survived a barrage of punches as well as a long gullotine choke hold. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Tyron Woodley vs Stephen Thompson Thompson was busted open on the bridge of his nose in the first round. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Tyron Woodley vs Stephen Thompson Woodley floored Thompson and dominated the opening round but Thompson would fight back. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs Karolina Kowalkiewicz Joanna Jedrzejczyk was pushed all the way by fellow Pole Karolina Kowalkiewicz. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs Karolina Kowalkiewicz Jedrzejczyk dominated Kowalkiewicz for the first three rounds before the tables turned. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs Karolina Kowalkiewicz Jedrzejczyk remains the strawweight champion. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Chris Weidman vs Yoel Romero Chris Weidman suffered a brutal defeat after catching a flying knee from Yoel Romero. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Chris Weidman vs Yoel Romero Romero's flying knee split Weidman's head wide open to end the fight. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Miesha Tate vs Raquel Pennington Miesha Tate announced her retirement after defeat by former apprentice Raquel Pennington. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Miesha Tate vs Raquel Pennington Pennington dominated Tate for the entire three rounds. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Miesha Tate vs Raquel Pennington New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr was at ringside for the bout. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Frankie Edgar vs Jeremy Stephens Frankie Edgar got back to winning ways by defeating Jeremy Stephens. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Frankie Edgar vs Jeremy Stephens Edgar dominated Stephens but was rocked badly in the final round. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Khabib Nurmagomedov vs Michael Johnson Khabib Nurmagomedov immediately called out Conor McGregor after defeating Michael Johnson by submission. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Tim Boetsch vs Rafael Natal Tim Boetsch knocked out Rafael Natal in the first round. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Vincente Luque vs Belal Muhammad Vincente Luque beat Belal Muhammad inside 90 seconds. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Vincente Luque vs Belal Muhammad Luque caught Muhammad with a counter left to end the bout. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Jim Miller vs Thiago Alves Jim Miller beat Thiago Alves in the early preliminaries. Zuffa LLC via Getty UFC 205 Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez Liz Carmouche vs Katlyn Chookagian Liz Carmouche beat Katlyn Chookagian in the early preliminaries. Zuffa LLC via Getty

Mayweather, who is currently on a speaking tour of the UK, has now confirmed that he considers himself an active boxer again and reiterated that he is ready to face Mayweather later this year.

“When I faced Arturo Gatti, I went to his turf,” he said. “He was the A side, I was the B side. I beat him, I didn’t cry, I didn’t complain.

“When I faced Oscar De La Hoya, he was the A side, I was the B side. I didn’t cry, I didn’t complain, I beat him and I became the A side.



“For Conor McGregor, I’m coming out of retirement, just to fight Conor McGregor. I don’t want to hear no more excuses about the money, about the UFC. Sign the paper with the UFC so you can fight me in June. Simple and plain. Let’s fight in June.

“Today, I’m officially out of retirement for Conor McGregor. We don’t need to waste no time. We need to make this s*** happen quickly. Let’s get it on in June.”

The greatest barrier to Mayweather and McGregor’s meeting, which would likely be the biggest pay-per-view fight of all-time, is McGregor’s contractual situation with the UFC.