Floyd Mayweather win over Conor McGregor spared bookies 'bloody nose'

Floyd Mayweather's victory over Conor McGregor spared Ladbrokes Coral (LSE: LAD.L - news) a "bloody nose", the bookmaker revealed today.

The blockbuster Las Vegas bout last weekend became the firm's biggest betting event outside the Grand National.

Chief (Taiwan OTC: 3345.TWO - news) executive Jim Mullen said backing for McGregor "took us by surprise", with wagers on the Irish martial arts fighter - untested in the boxing ring - outstripping those for veteran Mayweather.

He said Mayweather's victory in the tenth round - securing his 50th undefeated fight - saved Ladbrokes (Amsterdam: LB6.AS - news) from a "bloody nose".

Mr Mullen said: "What we saw was a remarkable amount of money coming in on McGregor.

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"We had an athlete who hadn't boxed since he was 14 boxing against a living legend.

"We found him becoming a significant liability - if he'd won in the fourth round, I would've been crying into my cornflakes."

The group reported a 7% rise in operating profit to £158m for the six months to the end of June, driven by strong trading online.

Revenue rose 1% to £1.19bn.

The Mayweather-McGregor bout delivered a boost at the start of the second half of its financial year.

But the group - formed from the £2.3bn merger of Ladbrokes and Coral last November - said that the start of the football season would be the "crucial sporting action" for the period.