Oleksandr Usyk gained more than just the right to claim the title of best in the division when he overcame Tyson Fury in December to keep his WBA, WBC, and WBO heavyweight crowns. In addition to making a fortune from his triumph at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Fury also performed admirably in the loss.
Usyk and Fury both rank among the top 10 richest boxers of all time, proving that boxing’s growing popularity in the area has led to good financial treatment for all participants in major bouts.
Social media star Jake Paul also enters the list, according to Celebrity Net Worth, after making a sizable profit from his contentious fight with Mike Tyson. The fighters that do make the top 10 are so rich that Tyson ($20 million) and Anthony Joshua ($80 million) don’t make the cut.
The ten wealthiest boxers in history
Place
The Boxer
Net worth
10.
Paul Jake
$100 million
9.
Leonard Sugar Ray
$120 million
8.
Lewis, Lennox
$120 million
7.
Tyson Fury
$146 million
6.
Usyk, Oleksandr
$165 million
5.
De La Hoya Oscar
$200 million
4.
Pacquiao, Manny
$220 million
3.
‘Canelo’ Saul Alvarez
$250 million
2.
Foreman, George
$300 million
1.
Floyd Mayweather
$400 million
10Jake Paul
Net worth: $100 million
Even though Jake Paul is a controversial figure, it’s difficult to dispute his box office success given that his capacity to make millions of dollars has allowed him to amass a $100 million net worth, which is indicative of his remarkable business acumen. In addition to defeating boxing great Mike Tyson, Paul’s previous wins over Nate Diaz, Tyron Woodley, and Anderson Silva, as well as his defeat of Tommy Fury, have brought him enormous financial success. It’s safe to say that he has earned his millions of dollars through his businesses, which include a betting company and a care brand.
9Sugar Ray Leonard
Net worth: $120 million
The renowned Sugar Ray Leonard, a six-time world champion and member of the Boxing Hall of Fame, is the first retired boxer on the list. With a 36-3-1 record and 25 knockouts under his belt, Leonard’s astounding career accomplishments now include an Olympic gold medal.
Frequently cited as one of the greatest boxers of all time, Leonard’s 20-year career included victories in five different weight classes and membership in the ‘Four Kings’, a group of fighters who helped put boxing on its feet by competing against one another in some of the biggest bouts of the post-Ali era. His prowess in the ring transferred into financial success, and the American is said to have a net worth of $120 million. It was a career that any boxer would aspire to.
8Lennox Lewis
Net worth: $120 million
From inactive great to inactive great, Lennox Lewis’s $120 million net worth demonstrates that he is among the greatest heavyweights England has ever produced. Throughout his career, Lewis won three world heavyweight titles while competing in the 1990s and into the new millennium.
Lewis, who won gold in the men’s super-heavyweight boxing at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, was able to represent Canada at multiple Games despite being born in London. Lewis is highly regarded in boxing history in part because of his flawless transition from amateur to professional success, which included winning a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games.
7Tyson Fury
Net worth: $146 million
Despite losing both of his most recent fights to Oleksandr Usyk, the Gipsy King has received incredibly high compensation. His latest fight with the Ukrainian is thought to have brought in well around $81 million!
It is safe to say that Fury has earned the right to live out his newly announced retirement in luxury thanks to his bouts and wins against fighters like Deontay Wilder, Francis Ngannou, Derek Chisora, and Dillian Whyte, as well as his four-year reign as heavyweight champion. However, he might increase his already remarkable fortune even more if he were to return to fight his bitter rival, Anthony Joshua.
6Oleksandr Usyk
Net worth: $165 million
The fact that Usyk is thought to have made about $100 million for his second victory against Tyson Fury is enough to illustrate the full extent of how Saudi Arabia has changed the boxing industry’s financial environment. It’s simple to understand why the Ukrainian hero is among the richest boxers in history when you combine that with the staggering sums he earned from their first bout and from his two bouts against Anthony Joshua.
Given that he has only engaged in seven heavyweight bouts during his professional career, his $165 million net worth is all the more remarkable. Even though he is 38 years old and may only have a few fights remaining, he will undoubtedly earn a lot of money each time he competes in the future.
5Oscar De La Hoya
Net worth: $200 million
With an incredible net worth of $200 million, the Golden Boy is the fifth-wealthiest boxer. With a career record of 39-6, De La Hoya had a successful 16-year career. His bouts against Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. rounded out a resume that showed the American never backs down from a challenge. In addition to winning 11 world titles in six different weight classes, De La Hoya has had equal success off the ring. In 2014, Sports Illustrated named him the Promoter of the Year for his commercial endeavours.
4Manny Pacquiao
Net worth: $220 million
“PacMan” is a boxer who doesn’t require an introduction because of his illustrious past. Pacquiao, who has competed in four different decades, has an outstanding career record of 62-8. This record let the boxer, who was born in the Philippines, become the first eight-division world champion, a feat that hasn’t been surpassed since. With a well-earned net worth of $220 million, Pacquiao is currently enjoying a career in politics in his home country of the Philippines. This amount helped him rank as the second-highest earning athlete in Forbes in 2012 and 2015.
3Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez
Net worth: $250 million
Mexico’s Canelo Alvarez, who has a claimed net worth of $250 million, is on the list of boxing’s biggest earners, and it’s easy to understand why after looking over his career. The Mexican, who is nearing his 20th year as a professional boxer, has won 62 of his 66 fights.
He has won numerous world titles in four different weight classes and is currently the WBC and WBO world super middleweight champion. In 2021, he became the first boxer to become the undisputed champion at super middleweight. Canelo still has lots of time to increase his wealth because he is only 34 years old. Later this year, a fight with pound-for-pound sensation Terence Crawford is scheduled. Jake Paul, meantime, is demanding to face the super middleweight king. Alvarez may become quite wealthy from both.
2George Foreman
Net worth: $300 million
George Foreman, a former boxer and current grill guru, has a net worth of $300 million, making him the second-highest earner on a list that anyone would be thrilled to be on. Foreman was working as a heavyweight in the ring before he made his money on grills. Foreman managed to earn an Olympic gold medal while also enjoying an incredible 76 victories out of his 81 career fights.
A year later, Foreman became the oldest heavyweight champion in history and, by extension, the second-oldest champion in any weight class, having won one of his two career world titles at the age of 45. It’s unclear how much of his financial success comes from boxing or grilling, but it’s reasonable to say that Foreman is among the best at both.
1Floyd Mayweather Jr
Net worth: $400 million
Money Mayweather is both by name and by nature. Even though Mayweather hasn’t competed professionally since 2017, he still holds the title of richest boxer, with an estimated net worth of $400 million. With a 50-0 record, the Pretty Boy defeated Pacquiao, Canelo, Conor McGregor, Ricky Hatton, and Victor Ortiz, making him one of the few fighters to retire with a perfect record.
In his lifetime, he won 15 major world titles in five different weight classes. The BWAA named him the ‘Fighter of the Decade’ for the 2010s, while ESPN named him the greatest boxer of all time in terms of pound-for-pound. Due to his brief experience in the WWE and other commercial endeavours, a man who is unquestionably one of the greatest to have ever graced boxing is regarded as the richest man in boxing—a moniker that is appropriate for someone who goes by the name “Money.”
