It was the highly anticipated boxing match set to glue all eyeballs to the screen: Floyd Mayweather taking on Logan Paul. Most had expected it to be a quick knockout, with Mayweather seizing victory in record time. The reality was markedly different. The exhibition match instead seemed to drag on, going the full distance with the kind of muted result that left many of those who spent money on it feeling dissatisfied and empty.
Perhaps the most entertaining part of the whole ordeal were the replays, which kicked off a slew of conspiracy theories as one clip portrayed Mayweather hitting Paul and knocking him out, only to then hold his body upright so as to prevent him from hitting the floor. Not surprisingly, many deemed the fight to be ‘fake’ and Mayweather was criticised over the eight-round exhibition bout with the famed YouTuber. But if there was any question as to why a boxing legend would agree to do such a thing, Mayweather has now revealed he pocketed a jaw-dropping $100 million for the fight.
Speaking after his protege Gervonta Davis beat Mario Barrios over the weekend, Mayweather revealed some startling insights about the fight, including how much he received in the process. The fight cost up to $50 to watch in the US and proved extremely lucrative in terms of streaming. “I’m the only person that can do a fake fight and get $100 M’s,” said Mayweather. “I could do legalised sparring and get $100 M’s.”
“Am I the best bank robber? Because I don’t know nobody in sports that’s my age and can still stick ‘em up like that,” added Mayweather.
Floyd Mayweather boasting about making $100million for his exhibition with Logan Paul after Gervonta Davis' win…
— Michael Benson (@MichaelBensonn) June 27, 2021
[????️ @ShowtimeBoxing] pic.twitter.com/nehjApdnUL
Meanwhile, Logan had questioned Mayweather’s sincerity during the fight. In a post-fight interview, Logan questioned, “I mean, you never know with this guy. I’m going to go home thinking, ‘Did Floyd let me survive?’ It’s an honour to grace the ring with him. This is the coolest thing ever.”
Still, with enough money to serve him well in his retirement, it doesn’t look like Mayweather is poised for another match anytime soon. After retiring in 2017 with a 50-0 record, he told reporters he would be going into the Hall of Fame, with nothing left to prove. “If they are happy with grappling and holding for eight rounds, that’s good for them – I hope the fans were pleased,” he said. “I have been in this sport for so long, I was letting people see I can come out at the age of 44 and bring 30,000 to the stadium and bring good pay-per-view numbers.”
Mayweather added, “I am not going to perform like I was 19, it’s all about growth and ageing – I can’t fight like when I fought people like Gatti and people like that. Will I make a comeback? Absolutely not. I have retired from the sport of boxing. I probably won’t do an exhibition again either.”
