Floyd Mayweather has congratulated the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi who joined him on Forbes’ list of the highest earning sports stars of the decade.
Despite fighting on only 10 occasions since 2010, the 42-year-old boxing icon raked in an astonishing £706million ($915m).
Mayweather netted almost a third of that sum from his bout against UFC kingpin Conor McGregor back in August 2015, which saw him extend his unbeaten professional record to 50 fights.
The American has been out of competitive action since then, although he banked $9 million (£7m) from an exhibition contest against Japanese kickboxer Tenshin Nasukawa last December.
‘I’ve got calls to get back into the ring, but my health is my wealth,’ he told Reuters. ‘Boxing is a very, very brutal sport. In the last few years a lot of fighters have died inside that squared circle.
‘You have got to know when to hang it up. I had a great career. ‘I’ll still travel and do exhibitions. I make great money doing exhibitions; between $10 and $30 million. I think I make more doing that than most fighters make fighting.’
Mayweather’s long-time foe Manny Pacquiao is the only other boxer in the top 10 with the 41-year-old having amassed £335m, a significant portion of which was earned when the two rivals eventually faced each other back in 2015.
Join Daily Trust WhatsApp Community For Quick Access To News and Happenings Around You.
