Professional athletes at the top of their game earn pots and pots of money. Premiership footballers, for example, are not only renowned for their bad taste in cars but they also copy each other, and before you know it all footballers are turning up to practice in matching Bentley Continental GTs.
Now take the premier footballer, multiply his pay packet and ego by around ten times and you have the professional boxer. These perfectly sculpted fighting machines battle in front of millions of impassioned fans, and once they’ve defeated their opponent, they bask in the glory of cheers and whistles of adoration. So basically, these guys ain’t gonna drive a Prius.
Mike Tyson
Mike Tyson’s life has seen more ups and downs than an aging kangaroo. From the rags of living in a rough neighbourhood and tending to his beloved pigeons to becoming the youngest heavyweight champion of the world, Mike Tyson has seen money come and go as easily as he knocked out his opponents.
Having managed to throw away $300M and suffer defeat in the ring, Tyson still managed to rise from the rubble and appear in the movie The Hangover II, which bought him a lot of media attention.
Tyson has owned or still owns Bentleys, Ferraris, and Lamborghinis, but it’s this stunning blue Diablo that wins it for me.
Floyd Mayweather
When it comes to inflated egos, no one on this planet comes close to “Pretty Boy” Mayweather. You may ask, “what about Muhammad Ali?” I think Ali knew what he was doing and used his phrases and ostensible arrogance as a kind of gimmick – this man, not so.
Mayweather possess model looks, moves around the ring like a ballerina, and is undefeated. He’s more than crude about his assets though (his boxing entourage is called “Money Team”), and this definitely shows in his car collection.
From Lambos to Ferraris, Bentleys to his twin Rolls Royces, Mayweather has a ride for every day of the week. Apart from a few of his Italian stock, he ensures all his other cars are white, and this Mercedes SLS looks simply stunning.
Chris Eubank
Chris Eubank is a retired boxer who was both a great in the ring and out. He strutted his way to the ring to Tina Turners’ “Simply The Best”, and once in action, he would drop his guard and put his gloves together in his trademark pose. He also held world titles at middleweight and super middleweight. He was a world champion for over five years, was undefeated in his first ten years, and remained undefeated at middleweight.
‘Enigmatic’ doesn’t come close to describing this man’s character. From multi-coloured Lycra running suits, to riding chaps, boots and monocle, Eubank is often seen driving around is hometown of Brighton in either his Hummer or his giant American truck – this has got him into all kinds of trouble but he still remains one of my childhood heroes.
Prince Naseem
Who could forget this lightening quick featherweight? After his signature somersault flip into the ring, he would literally run rings around his opponents and strike with deadly speed and accuracy – even when he comically dropped his guard and stuck out his chin, he still had the ability to land punches and not get hit back. A world champion, Naseem fought 37 fights, won 36, 31 being Kos, with only one loss.
Naseem hasn’t had much luck in with his cars and he is unfortunately only remembered for his driving antics. From being banned for speeding in his Porsche to his high-speed crash in his McLaren SLR, Naseem eventually ended up in prison. Even his Aston Martin got vandalised…
Manny Pacquiáo
Arguably the greatest pound for pound fighter ever to grace the ring, this little Filipino has won 10 world titles in 8 different weight classes. Aside from his extensive record inside the ring, aside from boxing, Pacquiáo has acted, recorded music and dabbled in politics.
Manny has a good taste in cars, and among his 22 collection you’ll find a Ferrari 458 Italia, an armoured Hummer, a Porsche Cayenne Turbo, a Lincoln Navigator and a Mercedes Brabus SL.
Some of these cars I’m not so sure about, but I won’t be telling them that.
