I am not sure if it is on heavy rotation in the sports world, but Evander Holyfield, yes THAT Evander Holyfield is back in the boxing ring...again. This time he is facing a sideshow like freak of a man by the name of Nikolai Valuev for the WBA Heavyweight Championship of the World this Saturday in of all places, Zurich, Switzerland. Now, many pundits have put their pen to this issue and lambasted Holyfield as it seems he is just another in a long line of pro athletes who just don't know how to go away. If we were to place a 'reasonable man' in his position, I am willing to wager that he would have flown the coop with loot, cashed out of all debt and is quietly living off of the interest is some non-extradition country of their choice. I know that sounds far fetched, but I had to write on this as I am still trying to fathom how one can blow throw over $200 million; Holyfield made $34 million alone in ONE night's work against Mike Tyson!!
I am not sure if anyone remembers a movie by the name of 'Brewster's Millions'. Richard Pryor starred alongside John Candy as a washed up lower level pitcher for some minor league team. His great uncle or other rich relative type died and left him $30 million with the condition that he spend it all in 1 month and have no assets at that time; if successful, he would get $300 million. If want more details, go see the film...in the movie, the character STRUGGLED to blow $30 million in a month...a fictional person in Hollywood script...how in the world is Evander Holyfield's home in foreclosure? Why has he coined same tag-line most broke athletes used when not paying attention to their money while living in a 'American Dream' haze? 'I trusted people around me and I was robbed'...The simple fact of the matter is that it SHOULD be impossible to blow $30 million, much less $200 million; but let us look at the factors abound that would lead a 46 year old man to continue fighting. Is it the 11 children he has? I don't think so; I know that child support can be a major constraint on one's cash flow, but $200 million? I doubt it. Let's see, he is still under investigation for receiving HGH (human growth hormone) by mail; but even Jose Canseco or Hulk Hogan cannot run through $200 million worth of chemical performance enhancers.
Most of the money (that's just purse money, not the Burger King money or Sega's 'Real Deal Boxing' money) was probably tied up in shady 'get richer quick' schemes and excessive living. I can see why one would want to live in a huge house, but let's be for real...if one is in foreclosure, that means one has a loan against the property and if one has a loan, they don't own. Is it possible that he surrounded himself with items and property that he did not own or intend to own? We all know that the with loans, rates change and as rates change and fights (in his case) become more sparse, and endorsers no longer showing interest, there is nothing but drain going on...likewise in excess. He probably had a lawyer on retainer 24 hrs a day and wanted live off the sweat of his toil that broke his face, battered his body and took a piece of his ear (thanks, Mike). One thing I believe athletes do not prepare for is this type of dilemma...you leave the game or the game passes you by and they are sitting virtually in the same mental condition (or worse) that the got into it with. They did not become savvy and invest in themselves, who is the real cash cow in life. Now image if he got his BA/BS or Graduate Degree, imagine if he paid for media training and became a student of the game so much so that he would be a part of the broadcast team covering some washed up fighter looking for a quick buck rather than being the washed up fighter.
The official bottoming out for an athlete of this kind is when they sell the very items that brought them so much fame, money and glory. The stubbornness to not move out of the compound and into a relatively modest, yet very high end condo was not an option. Getting rid of the 7 sports cars and jewelry was out of the question. This type of logic only leads to all of the 'Golden Gloves' trophies and other memorabilia that was meant for him to look back on with pride and accomplishment being on eBay, some nut with real money can brag and boast about how 'Evander and me were so tight he gave me his Golden Gloves trophy from 1985'. We need not go any further in that discussion when we look at the downfall of OJ Simpson, who needed money, which led to the failed attempt to re-acquire and sell his old football memorabilia which has landed him in prison. I wish 'Real Deal' the best, but George Foreman has already written this story with a happy ending (cooking salmon on my grille as we speak); sadly many other athletes travel this slippery slope in a quest to maintain an impossible lifestyle. When you are finished reading this, please provide a list of athletes and entertainers who have lived so fast and rich but have bottomed out due to a depressing life of excess; gives more significance to the term 'disposable money'. On a side-note, look up the fighter Holyfield is facing...what a monster...literally. I hope he gets a GEICO endorsement deal if he wins...no make up needed.
I am not sure if anyone remembers a movie by the name of 'Brewster's Millions'. Richard Pryor starred alongside John Candy as a washed up lower level pitcher for some minor league team. His great uncle or other rich relative type died and left him $30 million with the condition that he spend it all in 1 month and have no assets at that time; if successful, he would get $300 million. If want more details, go see the film...in the movie, the character STRUGGLED to blow $30 million in a month...a fictional person in Hollywood script...how in the world is Evander Holyfield's home in foreclosure? Why has he coined same tag-line most broke athletes used when not paying attention to their money while living in a 'American Dream' haze? 'I trusted people around me and I was robbed'...The simple fact of the matter is that it SHOULD be impossible to blow $30 million, much less $200 million; but let us look at the factors abound that would lead a 46 year old man to continue fighting. Is it the 11 children he has? I don't think so; I know that child support can be a major constraint on one's cash flow, but $200 million? I doubt it. Let's see, he is still under investigation for receiving HGH (human growth hormone) by mail; but even Jose Canseco or Hulk Hogan cannot run through $200 million worth of chemical performance enhancers.
Most of the money (that's just purse money, not the Burger King money or Sega's 'Real Deal Boxing' money) was probably tied up in shady 'get richer quick' schemes and excessive living. I can see why one would want to live in a huge house, but let's be for real...if one is in foreclosure, that means one has a loan against the property and if one has a loan, they don't own. Is it possible that he surrounded himself with items and property that he did not own or intend to own? We all know that the with loans, rates change and as rates change and fights (in his case) become more sparse, and endorsers no longer showing interest, there is nothing but drain going on...likewise in excess. He probably had a lawyer on retainer 24 hrs a day and wanted live off the sweat of his toil that broke his face, battered his body and took a piece of his ear (thanks, Mike). One thing I believe athletes do not prepare for is this type of dilemma...you leave the game or the game passes you by and they are sitting virtually in the same mental condition (or worse) that the got into it with. They did not become savvy and invest in themselves, who is the real cash cow in life. Now image if he got his BA/BS or Graduate Degree, imagine if he paid for media training and became a student of the game so much so that he would be a part of the broadcast team covering some washed up fighter looking for a quick buck rather than being the washed up fighter.
The official bottoming out for an athlete of this kind is when they sell the very items that brought them so much fame, money and glory. The stubbornness to not move out of the compound and into a relatively modest, yet very high end condo was not an option. Getting rid of the 7 sports cars and jewelry was out of the question. This type of logic only leads to all of the 'Golden Gloves' trophies and other memorabilia that was meant for him to look back on with pride and accomplishment being on eBay, some nut with real money can brag and boast about how 'Evander and me were so tight he gave me his Golden Gloves trophy from 1985'. We need not go any further in that discussion when we look at the downfall of OJ Simpson, who needed money, which led to the failed attempt to re-acquire and sell his old football memorabilia which has landed him in prison. I wish 'Real Deal' the best, but George Foreman has already written this story with a happy ending (cooking salmon on my grille as we speak); sadly many other athletes travel this slippery slope in a quest to maintain an impossible lifestyle. When you are finished reading this, please provide a list of athletes and entertainers who have lived so fast and rich but have bottomed out due to a depressing life of excess; gives more significance to the term 'disposable money'. On a side-note, look up the fighter Holyfield is facing...what a monster...literally. I hope he gets a GEICO endorsement deal if he wins...no make up needed.
Ah yes...the slippery slope of a professional athlete. Well the infamous tag-line has some truth behind it, since they tend to focus on 'right here right now' and this in turn leads to other folks handling all of their business. But why? I mean are pros so short on time between workouts, practices and games that they can't spend a little time thinking about when, where and how much to invest for their future? Naw, instead they just fork over that 'disposable cash' thinking that folks will have their best interests in mind. Well not until they take some stock in their future, or we will continue to have these washed up pro athlete that just keep going and going!
ReplyDelete"Of course I am disappointed," Holyfield said. "I thought I had done enough to get the win. Now I have to go home and think about my future."
ReplyDeleteHmm...sounds like the jabs of those pundits hit home for Holyfield.