Between 1996 and 2006, Floyd ‘Money’ Mayweather was represented by Bob Arum’s Top Rank Boxing promotional organization. Throughout that time, the boxer earned a total of $10 million in his career.
In 2006, Mayweather chose to leave Arum and launch his own boxing promotion firm, ‘Mayweather Promotions.’ Yet, the decision to go solo was not taken lightly. He was offered $8 million to face Antonio Margarito in April 2006, but the fighter countered with a $20 million offer to fight Oscar De La Hoya. According to Celebrity Net Worth, Arum thought Mayweather was a good boxer but was hesitant to stake such a large sum of money on him against De La Hoya, thus he declined Mayweather’s offer despite his repeated requests.
While Arum stayed steadfast, Mayweather took the biggest risk of his life by leaving the Top Rank Boxing promotion. He had to pay the corporation $750,000 in addition to losing his promised revenue under his contract as a result of this brave decision.
He eventually earned $8 million fighting Carlos Baldomir, a fight that garnered attention to him in his pursuit of De La Hoya. According to Celebrity Net Worth, he finally got his chance with Dela Hoya in 2007 and ended up earning $25 million on what became the highest-paying fight in boxing history at the time.
Six years later, he obtained his own Nevada Gaming Commission promoter’s license and established ‘Mayweather Promotions.’ Because he started his own boxing promotion company, he was in charge of all the money for an event, including his opponent’s purse.
He paid Saul Alvarez $10 million in 2013, in addition to paying for the event site, suppliers, food and beverages, and other expenses. Yet, he walked away with $75 million. Additionally, when he later fought Manny Pacquiao, he gave Manny a guaranteed $50 million to show up yet made up to $250 million from this one fight alone. He then earned $300 from his fight against Conor McGregor.
As a result of becoming his own boss, the money man has become one of the highest-paid athletes in the last decade. Forbes named him the highest-paid athlete in 2019 after he reportedly earned $915 million in ten years with no significant sponsorship deals or paychecks from anyone. In addition, he earned $115 million more than any other athlete.
HowAfrica stated in 2021 that the retired boxer is worth $450 million, with his total career earnings projected to be $1.1 billion.