With the Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor superfight less than two weeks away, some of the action on the sidelines is as intriguing as the bout itself. For example: The Maloof brothers are laying down some big money for Mayweather — and helping charity in the process.
Mayweather vs. McGregor: Maloof brothers betting $880,000 on Floyd — for charity
The former Kings owners plan to donate the potential $160K winnings
Photo by Isaac Brekken/Getty Images
Gavin and Joe Maloof, the former owners of the Sacramento Kings, feel pretty good about Mayweather’s chances to win. The brothers put down $880,000 on the 49-0 boxer, which is believed to be the biggest bet made so far. Whether they’ll donate the $160,000 winnings or total money amount (which includes both the initial bet and the winning payout) to various charities in the Vegas area is slightly unclear.
“We have a huge opportunity to help a lot of people in charities, so we decided to do it,” said Gavin in an interview with the Associated Press, via ABC News. “It’s a neat way to enjoy the fight, and it’s a fun way to promote our product.”
According to OddsShark, Mayweather is currently the -500 favorite. Betting $880,000 on that line will earn you around $176,000, which is no small amount of change. By contrast, McGregor is the +350 underdog. If he does the unthinkable and beats Mayweather in his boxing debut, an $880,000 bet would turn into a $3.08 million payout. It’s easy to see why so much money is coming in on Conor (according to the ABC article, “85 percent of the money has been bet on McGregor in recent weeks”) even though very few people expect him to win.
Yet despite the trends, the Maloofs are holding steady on their Mayweather bet. “So I called my brother, Joe, and said, ‘We should put a wager on Floyd, because I don’t think he’s going to lose,’” said Gavin. “Not to take anything away from Conor. He’s good. But I just like Floyd a lot.”
The Maloofs owned the NBA’s Kings from 1998 until they sold the team in 2013. They recently got back into the sports business as minority owners of the NHL’s expansion Vegas Golden Knights, which begins play later this year.
We’ll see how much money the Maloofs’ bet pays off when Mayweather and McGregor square off Aug. 26 on Showtime PPV.
See More:
