Irish Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighter and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) icon Conor McGregor has been crowned the world's highest-paid athlete for the first time in his career on Wednesday.
Nicknamed The Notorious, the former two-division UFC champion has not regularly featured in the top 10 of the highest-paid athletes' list but in 2021, the MMA star has achieved his personal best by securing the numero uno position.
McGregor has outclassed the likes of Juventus superstar Cristiano Ronaldo, Barcelona captain, and club legend Lionel Messi to claim the top spot in the sporting rich list. Interestingly, McGregor only had a single bout in 2020 although the Mixed martial arts superstar managed to earn an estimated $22 million from his memorable triumph over Donald Cerrone. McGregor had recorded his impressive win over Cerrone in January which turned out to be his only fight for the year 2020.
As per the World's Top 10 Highest-Paid Athletes list announced by Forbes, McGregor finished at the top with estimated earnings of $180 million this year.
According to the report, at least $158 million of his earnings came out of the wrestling ring. The Irish superstar who had earlier expressed his desire of buying Premier League club Manchester United is followed by two of the greatest footballers in the beautiful game.
McGregor is followed by Portuguese goal machine Ronaldo and Argentine stalwart Messi. While Messi has been ranked second in this year's list, his Ballon d'Or rival Ronaldo has taken the third spot. Messi earned $130 million over the last year and Ronaldo managed to take home $120 million.
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott was third on the list with $107.5 million. He was followed by Los Angeles Lakers icon LeBron James ($96.5 million) and Paris Saint-Germain superstar Neymar ($95 million). Swiss marvel and tennis legend Roger Federer ($90 million) also entered the top 10. The top 10 list was completed by Lewis Hamilton ($82 million), NFL Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady ($76 million), and Brooklyn Nets star Kevin Durant ($75 million).
