Floyd Mayweather Jr. defeats Conor McGregor by TKO

(CNN)In a result that shocked few, Floyd Mayweather Jr. defeated Conor McGregor by technical knockout before a crowd of 14,623 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday.

McGregor, though, surprised many by going toe to toe with Mayweather until the 10th round.

"He's a lot better than I thought he was," Mayweather said after the bout.

Mayweather's record is now 50-0, surpassing Rocky Marciano, who went 49-0. After Saturday's win, Mayweather said this was the final fight of his career, calling McGregor "a hell of a champion."

"A win is a win, no matter how you get it," Mayweather said. "Rocky Marciano is a legend, and I look forward to going into the Hall of Fame one day."

Living up to the hype

The only certainty of this fight was that it would be a spectacle not seen before. It lived up to the hype.

Two different sports worlds collided into a 12-round junior middleweight boxing match: Mayweather, considered one of the best defensive boxers of all time, coming out of retirement at age 40, his last fight a unanimous decision victory over Andre Berto on September 12, 2015. McGregor, 29, is the current UFC lightweight champion and the most exciting draw in mixed martial arts today -- but it was his first professional boxing match.

Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

McGregor started running out of steam later in the fight, and Mayweather capitalized in the 10th round.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

Referee Robert Byrd stopped the fight in the 10th after a wobbly McGregor took several hard shots and wasn't throwing punches.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

Mayweather and his father celebrate the victory.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

The two combatants embrace after the fight.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

Demi Lovato sang the national anthem before the fight.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

McGregor entered the arena first, draped in the Irish flag.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

Mayweather came out in all black and wore a mask.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

There were many celebrities on hand to watch the fight, including basketball star LeBron James. Behind James is boxing legend Mike Tyson.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

Actress Jennifer Lopez and her boyfriend, former baseball star Alex Rodriguez, take in the fight.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

Actress Charlize Theron sits close to ringside.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

A fan waves an Irish flag before the start of the fight.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

Floyd Mayweather Jr. lands a right hand against Conor McGregor during their boxing match in Las Vegas on Saturday, August 26. Mayweather stopped McGregor in the 10th round, collecting his 50th victory in what he said will be the last fight of his undefeated pro career. It was the first pro boxing match for McGregor, a mixed martial artist who is the UFC's lightweight champion.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

McGregor lands an uppercut early in the bout. He came out aggressive and took the fight to Mayweather in the first few rounds.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

McGregor sticks his tongue out at Mayweather during an early exchange.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

McGregor swarms Mayweather at the start of the fight.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

The much-anticipated fight was held at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

After a typically slow start, Mayweather started to force the action more in the middle rounds.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

McGregor might have lacked in experience, but he had a clear size advantage.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

There were several awkward exchanges when McGregor would end up behind Mayweather.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

The two fighters trade punches in the middle of the fight.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

Mayweather landed more punches than McGregor -- 130-60 -- in rounds six through 10. McGregor had a 51-40 edge in the first five rounds.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

McGregor started running out of steam later in the fight, and Mayweather capitalized in the 10th round.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

Referee Robert Byrd stopped the fight in the 10th after a wobbly McGregor took several hard shots and wasn't throwing punches.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

Mayweather and his father celebrate the victory.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

The two combatants embrace after the fight.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

Demi Lovato sang the national anthem before the fight.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

McGregor entered the arena first, draped in the Irish flag.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

Mayweather came out in all black and wore a mask.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

There were many celebrities on hand to watch the fight, including basketball star LeBron James. Behind James is boxing legend Mike Tyson.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

Actress Jennifer Lopez and her boyfriend, former baseball star Alex Rodriguez, take in the fight.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

Actress Charlize Theron sits close to ringside.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

A fan waves an Irish flag before the start of the fight.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

Floyd Mayweather Jr. lands a right hand against Conor McGregor during their boxing match in Las Vegas on Saturday, August 26. Mayweather stopped McGregor in the 10th round, collecting his 50th victory in what he said will be the last fight of his undefeated pro career. It was the first pro boxing match for McGregor, a mixed martial artist who is the UFC's lightweight champion.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

McGregor lands an uppercut early in the bout. He came out aggressive and took the fight to Mayweather in the first few rounds.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

McGregor sticks his tongue out at Mayweather during an early exchange.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

McGregor swarms Mayweather at the start of the fight.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

The much-anticipated fight was held at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Hide Caption

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

After a typically slow start, Mayweather started to force the action more in the middle rounds.

Hide Caption

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

McGregor might have lacked in experience, but he had a clear size advantage.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

There were several awkward exchanges when McGregor would end up behind Mayweather.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

The two fighters trade punches in the middle of the fight.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

Mayweather landed more punches than McGregor -- 130-60 -- in rounds six through 10. McGregor had a 51-40 edge in the first five rounds.

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Photos: Mayweather finishes McGregor in 10th round

McGregor started running out of steam later in the fight, and Mayweather capitalized in the 10th round.

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It was billed as the first boxing-UFC crossover bout in history. It pitted youth vs experience. But it was a boxing fight with boxing rules, meaning McGregor couldn't kick or wrestle like he would in a UFC bout.

The speculation in the weeks leading up to the fight undeniably had Mayweather -- who hasn't lost since 1996 in the Olympics when he was an amateur -- as the heavy favorite. Heading into Saturday night, boxing aficionados viewed the fight as a joke.

It was no joke.

McGregor came out aggressive, throwing several punches in the first three rounds. Mayweather controlled the next three rounds, and it was close to an even fight through six.

But McGregor was running out of steam, and Mayweather took advantage, landing several blows on the exhausted Irishman in the 10th round.

Mayweather landed more punches than McGregor, 130-60, in rounds six through 10 after McGregor had a 51-40 edge in the first five rounds.

"Our game plan was to take our time, go to him, let him shoot his shots early and then take him out down the stretch," Mayweather said. "We know in MMA he fights for 25 minutes. After 25 minutes, he started to slow down. I guaranteed to everybody that this wouldn't go the distance."

McGregor said he thought it was an early stoppage by the referee.

"I get a little wobbly when I'm tired," he said. "But get me in the corner and I'll recover and I'll come back. There's a lot on the line here -- he should have let me keep going until I hit the floor. I was just a little fatigued. (Mayweather) was a lot more composed, especially in the later parts of the fight."

When asked if he would box again, McGregor said, "I don't know. I'm having a ball."

Will he return to UFC? "Of course," he said.

Stars turning out for the spectacle

This was hardly viewed as a matchup against equals in the boxing ring. Sure, McGregor has held UFC championships in two weight classes. But the sheer thought of McGregor knocking out the veteran Mayweather felt borderline absurd.