WBC to award The Money Belt to winner of Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor fight
LAS VEGAS -- To the victor goes the Money Belt.
The Floyd Mayweather-Conor McGregor junior middleweight bout Saturday (Showtime PPV, 9 p.m. ET) at the T-Mobile Arena is not for a world title, but what would a mega boxing event be without at least a bit of shiny hardware?
To fill that void, the WBC, the sanctioning body Mayweather has long been associated and held most of his world titles with during his 21-year career, created the Money Belt to present to the winner.
It's not a real world title but a trophy belt, and the winner will happily accept the jewel-encrusted strap.
WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman showed the belt off at the final prefight news conference Wednesday at the MGM Grand and ran down its particulars. It is made of 1.5 kilograms (about 3.3 pounds) of gold, 3,360 diamonds, 600 sapphires, 160 emeralds and Italian crocodile leather. It reads "Money Belt" across the top and took three weeks to produce at a cost of more than $1 million.
"The fight was made because of money, so we have the Money Belt," Sulaiman said. "The idea was to have the most incredible belt."
Sulaiman said his nephew, Hector, traveled to Italy to personally purchase the leather. He said the gold was purchased in Mexico.
Although the WBC is not charging a sanctioning fee for the belt, Mayweather Promotions agreed to pay the costs, Sulaiman said.
"The cost of the materials, the labor to make it, it is an expensive belt, and the winner of this big-money fight will deserve to have the Money Belt," Sulaiman said.
McGregor appeared enamored with the belt at the news conference and vowed to carry it into the Octagon with his other UFC belts should he have another mixed martial arts bout after Saturday's boxing match.
"If he beats Mayweather, he deserves to get the belt and do what he wants with it," Sulaiman said.
The WBC has created other trophy belts for major fights, including the diamond belt that Mayweather claimed against Miguel Cotto, the gold belt he snagged against Canelo Alvarez and the emerald belt he was awarded after beating Manny Pacquiao.
Author: Dan Rafael, ESPN
Source: http://www.espn.com/boxing/story/_/id/20438460/floyd-mayweather-vs-conor-mcgregor-winner-get-gaudy-money-belt-wbc
The Floyd Mayweather-Conor McGregor junior middleweight bout Saturday (Showtime PPV, 9 p.m. ET) at the T-Mobile Arena is not for a world title, but what would a mega boxing event be without at least a bit of shiny hardware?
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| The Money Belt |
It's not a real world title but a trophy belt, and the winner will happily accept the jewel-encrusted strap.
WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman showed the belt off at the final prefight news conference Wednesday at the MGM Grand and ran down its particulars. It is made of 1.5 kilograms (about 3.3 pounds) of gold, 3,360 diamonds, 600 sapphires, 160 emeralds and Italian crocodile leather. It reads "Money Belt" across the top and took three weeks to produce at a cost of more than $1 million.
"The fight was made because of money, so we have the Money Belt," Sulaiman said. "The idea was to have the most incredible belt."
Sulaiman said his nephew, Hector, traveled to Italy to personally purchase the leather. He said the gold was purchased in Mexico.
Although the WBC is not charging a sanctioning fee for the belt, Mayweather Promotions agreed to pay the costs, Sulaiman said.
"The cost of the materials, the labor to make it, it is an expensive belt, and the winner of this big-money fight will deserve to have the Money Belt," Sulaiman said.
McGregor appeared enamored with the belt at the news conference and vowed to carry it into the Octagon with his other UFC belts should he have another mixed martial arts bout after Saturday's boxing match.
"If he beats Mayweather, he deserves to get the belt and do what he wants with it," Sulaiman said.
The WBC has created other trophy belts for major fights, including the diamond belt that Mayweather claimed against Miguel Cotto, the gold belt he snagged against Canelo Alvarez and the emerald belt he was awarded after beating Manny Pacquiao.
Author: Dan Rafael, ESPN
Source: http://www.espn.com/boxing/story/_/id/20438460/floyd-mayweather-vs-conor-mcgregor-winner-get-gaudy-money-belt-wbc
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