Editorial: Mayweather vs McGregor - was it worth the wait?

Hawke's Bay Today news editor James Ford.

So, after a build-up like no other, the biggest sporting event of the year is over.

It ended like the majority would have anticipated, if not a little longer than expected.

Floyd Mayweather put in a dominant display after the opening exchanges to secure a TKO victory and more than $300 million for less than 30 minutes' work.

Let's not feel too sorry for his opponent Conor McGregor, though.

The $100m he collected will soften any permanent damage to what can only be described as a mammoth ego.

Boxing purists were critical from the outset of this clash of two fighting worlds. Insisting next month's bout between Canelo Álvarez and Gennady Golovkin is the sport's true main event of the year.

But, in reality, Mayweather and McGregor's bout captured the imagination of those beyond boxing and MMA.

Unlike so many other multimillion-dollar sporting events it lived up to the hype.

From the glitz and the glamour of the A-list audience to McGregor's cold stare down the camera lens and Mayweather's odd-looking executioner's mask.

And then, the fight itself.

A man with no professional boxing experience, and no hope in the eyes of the boxing fraternity, got the better of the first three rounds.

Credit must be given where it's due.

I'm not suggesting the hefty pay-per-view prices are ever justifiable.

But if we take a moment to consider why we watch sport. The passion, the heartache, the slight chance of the underdog, or the pleasure of watching the very best do what they do best. This event delivered in abundance.