Conor McGregor frustrated with ref's fight stoppage: 'Let the man put me down'

McGregor was upset about the TKO that ended his night in the 10th round

Conor McGregor was decisively defeated by Floyd Mayweather via technical knockout in 10th round of his boxing debut, but the Irishman was not all that happy with how the fight was called. McGregor was more than able to speak after the fight, and although he understood the decision to stop the fight, he clearly wanted a few more shots at Mayweather.

"I thought I took the early rounds pretty easy," McGregor said after the fight. "He's composed. He's not that fast, he's not that powerful, but boy, is he composed."

Mayweather used a style that boxing fans haven't seen out of him in some time, employing a significantly more aggressive approach. It was undoubtedly more aggressive than his controversial 2015 bout with Manny Pacquiao. Although McGregor did start strong, Mayweather simply seemed to outlast him throughout the fight. McGregor hadn't thrown a punch in nearly a minute when the fight was called, but he wanted to try to get some more licks in.

"I thought it was close," McGregor said. "Let me go down. Let the man put me down." McGregor added that he just wanted the opportunity to "go to [my] corner." However, with 1:55 left in the round and McGregor showing no signs of picking up the pace, it was unlikely that things would have ended much differently.

McGregor was impressive in his boxing debut, he just lacked the longevity needed to keep up with the seasoned Mayweather. McGregor, however, disagrees with that assessment. "I thought it was an early stoppage," he reiterated. "They should have let me keep going."

After the fight, UFC president Dana White said that he was extremely proud of McGregor, even if McGregor was upset with the result.

"He's not [proud]," White said. "He's very upset with himself. He feels like that fight was there for the taking. He thinks that the fight was stopped early. I was good with the stoppage. He's not a professional boxer. He stepped in here to fight arguably the best of all time, and he looked damn good doing it. I was OK with 10 rounds."

He'll surely be disappointed in the result of the fight, but McGregor impressed the boxing world with his performance. He didn't look polished and at times things may have looked ugly, but all of his flaws can be cleaned up with experience. Whatever his future holds, McGregor fared much better than many people expected, even if he fell short of his own lofty expectations.

Regardless of White's feeling, there's not question that the next time McGregor steps into the ring or the Octagon, he'll be looking to end the fight early. It's where he thrives, and he proved with this fight that he can put on a show.