Cape Town - Saturday's superfight between Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor exceeded expectations even in the eyes of its biggest critics.
READ: McGregor shows up at post-bout presser with bottle of whiskey
According to the FanSided website, most of those who gave MMA star McGregor, 29, next to no chance were pleased to be proven wrong and while overwhelming demand caused problems with the pay-per-view, the fight was a huge financial success for everyone involved.
Obviously, nobody’s bank account benefited more than boxing superstar Mayweather’s.
During the weeks leading up to the big-money brawl, Mayweather spoke to the media - and whoever else was willing to listen - about the "hundreds of millions" he expected to bank.
And in true Mayweather fashion, he didn’t hesitate to show the cameras a nine-figure pay cheque while working his way through the locker room following his victory.
Mayweather, 40, won the fight by a TKO in the 10th round - and promptly confirmed his retirement from the ring for a second time with a fight record that now stands at 50-0.
While appearing on Showtime’s “All Access: Mayweather-McGregor” to promote the fight, Mayweather claimed that his total earnings for the fight would top $300 million, pushing his career earnings past the $1 billion mark.
But most of that money will come from Mayweather’s majority cut of the revenue that was generated by the sale of pay-per-views, tickets, merchandise and food and beverages, as well as his own branding and sponsorship deals.
At the weigh-in, it was announced that McGregor had been guaranteed $30 million for the fight while Mayweather was given a much bigger guarantee of $100 million.
Due to the fact that all of that revenue had yet to be totaled when the video was shot immediately following the bout, there’s a very good chance that the cheque Mayweather is seen proudly holding in the video is the $100 million he was guaranteed.