In 2017, Conor McGregor and Floyd Mayweather’s first fight, dubbed ‘The Money Fight,’ generated over $600 million in revenue.
The retired American boxing legend, who achieved a perfect 50-0 record, concluded his professional career by defeating the Irish MMA superstar in the tenth round of their crossover boxing match five years ago.
The initial fight between the two was not expected to be competitive, and it concluded with a definitive outcome. However, the main reason for a possible rematch is quite straightforward – to generate more money.
During their first encounter, ‘The Money Fight’ made history by becoming the second most profitable combat sports event ever. It was surpassed only by Floyd’s 2015 super fight against Manny Pacquiao. Which earned over $600 million and drew a larger total number of viewers than Mayweather vs. McGregor.
The majority of the profits generated by The Money Fight came from pay-per-view sales in the United States. Mayweather vs. McGregor amassed 4.3 million buys, falling just shy of the record-breaking 4.6 million buys for Mayweather vs. Pacquiao.
A record that some speculate may never be broken. The T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas also generated $55 million in gate revenue from ticket sales.
Conor McGregor makes history with everything he does
Presently, this remains the second-largest boxing gate in history, following Mayweather vs. Pacquiao, which generated $72 million at the MGM Grand.
The Nevada State Athletic Commission revealed that Mayweather had a guaranteed purse of $100 million, while McGregor had a guaranteed purse of $30 million.
In reality, their earnings were much higher when pay-per-view profits were factored in. Mayweather reportedly made approximately $300 million in total from the fight, while McGregor earned around $100 million.
As a bonus, the WBC awarded the winner with the most valuable boxing belt ever created.
The WBC designed a unique belt for the Mayweather vs McGregor bout, known as the ‘Money Belt’. Although the exact cost of the belt was not revealed, experts estimated its value to be between $400,000 and $1m.
The belt featured 3,360 diamonds, 600 sapphires, 300 emeralds, and 1.5 kilograms of solid 24-karat gold. The leather used for the belt was imported from Italy and came from alligator skin.
If a rematch between Mayweather and McGregor materializes, both fighters will likely be aiming for another multi-million dollar payday, and the WBC may need to create another customized belt for the winner.
