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‘Humbled’ Floyd Mayweather Jr. named world’s highest-paid athlete by Forbes

Fighters Network
11
Jun

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Pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather Jr.'s net revenue of $105 million over the course of his majority decision victories over Saul Alvarez and Marcos Maidana made him the world's highest-paid athlete over the past 12 months according to Forbes' Magazine.



A Las Vegas resident who turned 37 in February, Mayweather (46-0, 26 knockouts) has earned the honor from the publication for the second time in the past three years. According to the magazine, Mayweather has pocketed at least $25 million over the course of his past nine fights.

"I'm humbled and extremely fortunate to be recognized by Forbes as the highest-paid athlete once again. I'm doing something that no other athlete is doing, promoting myself and seeing my hard work pay off in the form of record-breaking numbers," said Mayweather.

"It's all about hard work and dedication, which is so important and a key part of my financial success. I'm grateful for my family, team and fans. Being able to take care of my family is my number one priority and the level of success that I've achieved allows me to give them the best. I look forward to stepping into the ring in September and doing what I do best."

In addition, Mayweather's career-best revenue over the last calendar year makes him the first athlete other than Tiger Woods to surpass the $100 million mark. The $105 million also outdoes Mayweather's $85 million which led the list in 2012, when he supplanted professional golf's Tiger Woods. Woods had reigned from 2001 through 2011.

Mayweather earned a guaranteed $41.5 million  for September's unanimous decision over Alvarez for THE RING, WBA and WBC 154-pound championships, the highest-grossing boxing event of all time with nearly $150 million in pay-per-view revenue reported. The fight eclipsed the mark of $136 million earned in Mayweather’s 2007 victory over Oscar De la Hoya.

According to Forbes, Mayweather-Alvarez generaged a $20 million gate and around $200 million in total revenue.

Last month, Mayweather pocketed a guaranteed $32 million against Maidana, matching the amounts he was paid for unanimous decisions over Miguel Cotto and Robert Guerrero in May 2012 and May 2013, respectively.

Mayweather faced Maidana at the MGM Grand for the 12th time overall despite what Barclays Center CEO Brett Yormark characterized as the "most unprecedented offer ever made outside of Las Vegas."

An online report by Forbes estimated that Mayweather’s exclusive six-fight agreement with Showtime – his fourth in the deal to be an upcoming bout in September – to be worth at least a guaranteed $250 million to Mayweather, who made his first-ever appearance on Showtime Pay-Per-View when he beat Guerrero.

In May 2013, Mayweather was also named the highest-paid athlete in American sports for the second straight year according to SI.com’s Fortunate 50,

In July of 2012, Mayweather was also named the Sports Illustrated’s Fortunate 50 highest-paid American athlete over golfers Phil Mickelson and Woods. In 2013, Mayweather was named highest-paid athlete by ESPN for the second straight time.

Mayweather fights while simultaneously showcasing younger prospects on his undercards via his own company, Mayweather Promotions.

"I think that his success speaks volumes to the kind of people that he actually has around him and that he surrounds himself with," five-division champion Sugar Ray Leonard told RingTV.com in February.

"I have heard only good things about him and his promotional business and it's proof that he's surrounded by true, smart people who know the game along with a lot of input from Floyd Mayweather himself."