It hardly came as a surprise when Floyd ‘Money’ Mayweather stopped UFC star, Conor McGregor in 10 rounds on Saturday night in Las Vegas. Both Mayweather and McGregor pocketed $100,000,000 and $30,000,000 respectively. The 5 weight champion insisted immediately after the bout that his contest with McGregor was the very last of his career.
But is he telling the truth?
It is actually a difficult scenario to predict despite the fact that Mayweather has already come out of retirement twice. He will turn 41 in February, and despite getting a knockout win over McGregor, Floyd looked to have lost a step or two. In fact, it cannot be recalled when he was hit with so many punches, mostly with the jab. Perhaps he was confident enough that the inexperienced Irishman could not hurt him and was willing to sacrifice many of his once dazzling defensive reflexive moves. But realistically, more than likely age is catching up with him. And Mayweather will be well aware of this!
On the other hand, it is hardly a secret that ‘Money’ likes to gamble heavily and is not shy to lay a few million dollars on a single bet. Lavish jewellery, clothes and opulent looking cars are just a few of the other things that the boxer likes to indulge in. And he doesn’t care about showing it all off, either!
Mayweather’s promotions company, Mayweather Promotions is taking off pretty well. His biggest star, Gervonta Davis is always eager to get early wins which always excites the crowd. Other valuable names include Badou Jack and new professional female boxer, Savannah Marshall. If the boxer turned promoter continues to build his stable with names that the public want to see, and is willing to do business with other promoters, there will be little need to step into the ring again. Mayweather also has several endorsements under his belt, although it is hard to say how long these will last the longer he keeps those boxing trunks in his closet.
However, with all the above said, that pesky tax man will always want a sizeable slice of the pie. And Floyd has had issues with paying taxes in the past. In 2011, it was reported that the boxer owed more than $3,000,000 and accusations that he, again, owed money aired in the build up to the McGregor bout, although Floyd showed apparent photographic evidence that this was not the case.
IRS aside, the temptation to break his own records has been evident for the last few years. Floyd seems to like to try and outdo himself. He broke his own gate record with the McGregor bout and is confident that the PPV numbers will also be the highest in history, surpassing anything he contributed to setting before. Numbers are still yet to be determined.
Floyd Mayweather is nothing, if not creative. If he spots an opportunity to try something that has never been done before then he may just try and do it, even if it means fighting again. He may not have looked a million dollars on Saturday night but he probably still would have beaten some top names in that form.
It would be nice for him to bow out with a good round 50-0 figure on his record. And judging by how Mayweather views his selection of opponents in terms of who brings in the most money, there is little to suggest that his recent bouts have been about glory.
While we await for developments to unfold, if any will, you can bet that Floyd Mayweather is looking at the next major opportunity to make a buck or two. And providing that any possible future fight is legitimate and not a circus act, you’re best to set aside your Pay Per View money now.
