Nevada commission to vote on lighter gloves for Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor

The possibility of lighter gloves in Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor are no longer just talk.

The Nevada Athletic Commission (NAC) will vote on whether or not to allow the two men to wear 8-ounce gloves for their boxing match at a meeting Aug. 16, executive director Bob Bennett confirmed with MMA Fighting on Wednesday. Bennett said both McGregor and Mayweather want lighter gloves for their bout Aug. 26 at T-Mobile Arena.

The news was first reported by Sky Sports (h/t BoxingScene.com).

The commission rule, which is mostly universal in boxing, is that fighters who compete at 147 pounds and above cannot wear 8-ounce gloves. The standard for those bouts is 10-ounce gloves, which Mayweather and McGregor previously agreed to. Mayweather and McGregor are fighting at 154 pounds.

Under NAC regulations, 8-ounce gloves are used for fights at 135 pounds and below. In bouts between 135 and 147 pounds, 10-ounce gloves are traditionally used, but 8-ounce gloves can be worn if both sides agree. Anything over 147 pounds, it’s 10-ounce gloves.

However, Bennett confirmed with MMA Fighting last week that if both teams come before the commission and explain why they want smaller gloves, they could be issued a waiver after a vote.

“They would have to come before the commission and articulate why they should be permitted to have their fight using 8-ounce gloves,” Bennett said. "The chairman (Anthony Marnell) and commissioners would make the determination with the health and safety of the fighters being the number-one priority.”

Bennett said last week that Mayweather’s team reached out to him about the process in which they would go about making the glove size lighter. And now it appears both sides are moving forward with trying to get the fight contested with 8-ounce gloves, rather than 10.

Mayweather and McGregor went back and forth on social media last week about the size of the gloves, with Mayweather firing the first salvo.

“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.”

McGregor fired back that he didn’t care about glove size, pointing to Mayweather’s “brittle hands.” In MMA competition, the UFC lightweight champion wears 4-ounce gloves.