Boxing: Gracious loser Conor McGregor pays tribute to Floyd Mayweather on social media

Floyd Mayweather hits Conor McGregor in a super welterweight boxing match at Las Vegas. Photo/AP Photo

Conor McGregor is coming back down to earth, after the relentless months preparing and promoting his huge Floyd Mayweather fight.

The Irishman took a moment to reflect on the cross-over clash, in which he was stopped late on, and wrote a message thanking his fervent supporters.

Accompanying a picture of the UFC champion holding up a glass of his own brand of whiskey, McGregor even offered a theory as to where it went wrong, as well as praising Mayweather and suggesting he would do well in MMA.

He began by thanking his fans, many of whom made the long trip across the Atlantic to see their hero in the squared circle for the first time.

And McGregor then spoke at length about where he felt the difference was made in the fight itself.

He reflected that with slightly more preparation time, his body would have been conditioned to perform for the full 12 rounds, rather than fatigue so dramatically.

The 28-year-old said: "I feel with just a little change in certain areas of the prep, we could have built the engine for 12 full rounds under stress."

Despite the somewhat orchestrated pre-fight animosity between McGregor and Mayweather, the Dubliner had some kind words about his 50-0 opponent.

"He is a heck of a boxer. His experience, his patience and his endurance won him this fight, hands down.

"I always told him he was not a fighter, but a boxer, but sharing the ring with him, he is certainly a solid fighter,' he added.

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Finally, the MMA superstar teased that his next encounter might come sooner than you might think.

He said: "Onto the next one", but whether his next big pay day is in the octagon or under the Queensbury rules remains to be seen.