Mayweather, Paul Reportedly Took Home an Unfathomable Amount of Money After Exhibition Fight When you're raking in millions of dollars just for walking out of the ring alive, there's really no way you can lose.
By Emily Rella
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
As 2021 continues to deliver shocks and surprises (see: Jeff Bezos stepping down as Amazon CEO, massive cargo ship jamming Suez Canal), it only seems fitting that internet sensation Logan Paul would take on career-undefeated boxing legend Floyd Mayweather in an exhibition match on Saturday night in Miami.
Following eight unexpectedly competitive rounds, the two fighters parted ways without scoring a knockout. There was no clear winner declared.
But when you're raking in millions just for showing up to have a good time and, at minimum, walk out of the ring alive, there's really no way you can lose.
Related: 7 Lessons From the Boxing Ring
Given that Mayweather's nickname is "Money," it was foregone that he wouldn't show up to the ring without the promise of a hefty payout. Leading up to the fight, he shared with the Disruptive Entrepreneur podcast that for any given bout he was "guaranteed" to make at least $35 million and that he could "probably" make a solid $50 million. (Mayweather retired from officially sanctioned competition in 2017.)
But when it came to fighting Paul, Mayweather eyed a much larger sum.
"Me and Logan Paul can go out, entertain, have fun and make nine figures, $100 million or more," he said on the same podcast.
The 50-0 former multi-time title holder also likened his fight-night purse to a "legalized bank robbery" during Showtime's pre-match documentary last month. "I have to do it," he added.
Mayweather later laughed in a post-match press conference, referring to the fight as a "quick heist" adding, "My bank account [is] looking better each and every day."
Floyd Mayweather in full flow as he shows why his nickname is 'Money' at the press conference after Logan Paul…
— Michael Benson (@MichaelBensonn) June 7, 2021
[ @ShowtimeBoxing] pic.twitter.com/SRY31Y2Nml
Complex reports that Mayweather earned a $5 million fight purse on Saturday, and that he'll be banking 50% of all PPV sales, which could total a staggering sum given the $49.99 fee per stream.
Related: Floyd Mayweather On Greatness and Taking On YouTuber Logan Paul
Mayweather, who's worth approximately $450 million according to Celebrity Net Worth (though Mayweather claims he's aggregated well over a billion dollars), also said he had made $30 million leading up to the fight, presumably in appearances and endorsement deals.
Meanwhile, Celebrity Net Worth asserts that Paul, who is 18 years Mayweather's junior, has an estimated net worth of $19 million.
The internet star has amassed his fortune through countless sponsorships across all social media platforms, his Impaulsive podcast, appearance fees and profits from retail merchandise and his apparel company, Maverick Clothing.
Paul also entered the ring wearing a first-edition Pokémon Charizard card that he famously bought last year for $150,000.
Paul told TMZ that he expected to make somewhere around $20 million for his fight against Mayweather, with reports claiming that the YouTuber was guaranteed $250,000 for fighting with a 10% cut of all PPV revenue.
The social media sensation is no stranger when it comes to negotiating a healthy boxing paycheck. During his first (and only legitimate) match against British YouTuber KSI, Paul receieved a solid $900,000 base fee in a match that brought in around $11 million in revenue.
Though there are no official reports on earnings or final counts on how many viewers tuned in to watch the big show, it's safe to say that the total payout combined between the two men was well over $100 million.
Now that's a financial knockout.
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