McGregor is undoubtedly one of the biggest names in sport, known for his exciting fighting style and brutal trash talk.

Having enjoyed a highly successful 16-year career, the Irishman has banked hundreds of millions of dollars, making him by far the richest UFC fighter of all time.

And he’s not prepared to stop there, as McGregor has spoken about his plans to overtake NBA superstar Michael Jordan as the richest athlete of all time.

He said: “It’s motivating, Michael Jordan’s at the top spot, obviously with the Jordan brand that took him there, he’s worth multiple billions.

“I think it’s $3.3billion he’s made. I’m closing in on a billion, I think I’m at about $650m all in that I’ve made.

“I think they estimate that, I’d probably have to do my own little check of that, but I fancy my chances of getting up that list.

“It was good to see, that Forbes [richest athletes of the year list] was a goal of mine to hit that, I got that and onwards we go.”

At the time, McGregor was ranked 33rd in the list which was published by Sportico and, while he currently remains in the top 50 list, he has since fallen to the bottom.

That being said, he still remains the only mixed martial artist on the list and is in good company amongst some of sports greatest ever athletes such as Lionel Messi, Mike Tyson and Lewis Hamilton.

Conor McGregor reportedly earned $100m for his fight with Floyd Mayweather in 2017. (Image: Getty)

The list estimates that, when adjusted for inflation, the former UFC two-weight champion has earned $555million throughout his career.

The biggest pay day of McGregor’s career came in 2017 when he fought legendary boxer Floyd Mayweather for a reported purse of around $100m.

Since then, McGregor has embarked in several business endeavours outside of his fighting career, including starting whiskey brand Proper no. Twelve or investing in the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship.

However, he still has a long way to go if he hopes to dethrone Jordan who is estimated to have earned a breathtaking $3.75billion through his career in the NBA and highly successful shoe partnership with Nike.

Having enjoyed a highly successful career in the NBA, many believe that Jordan is the greatest basketball player of all time ahead of icons like Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and Shaquille O’Neal.

Across 15 seasons, ‘His Airness’ won six NBA titles, was a five-time MVP, six-time NBA finals MVP and holds a 6-0 record in those MVP finals.

And 21 years after retiring from basketball, Jordan could be set to win a championship in another sport.

In 2020, Jordan formed NASCAR team 23XI Racing alongside American racing driver Denny Hamlin, and one of their drivers, Tyler Reddick, is in contention to win the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series.

ith 13 races left, Reddick is currently second in the 43-man grid and is only five points behind leader Kyle Larson.

The 28-year-old American finished third in last weeks race at the Richmond Raceway in Virgina, finishing ahead of Larson who finished seventh and taking home 40 points which put him ahead of Chase Elliott.

In the 131 races competed in since Jordan formed the team four years ago, his drivers have won six but are yet to win a drivers’ championship.

When he created the team, Jordan became the first Black principal owner of a full-time NASCAR cup team since 1973 when Hall of Fame driver Wendell Scott drove his own car for 495 races.

“Historically, Nascar has struggled with diversity and there have been few Black owners,” Jordan said in a statement after announcing the creating of 23XI Racing.

“The timing seemed perfect as Nascar is evolving and embracing social change more and more.

“I see this as a chance to educate a new audience and open more opportunities for Black people in racing.

In 2020, Jordan formed NASCAR team 23XI Racing alongside American racing driver Denny Hamlin. (Image: Getty)

“Growing up in North Carolina, my parents would take my brothers, sisters and me to races, and I’ve been a Nascar fan my whole life.”

Hamlin, a close friend of Jordan’s, also races but for another team, Joe Gibbs Racing, and is currently fourth in the NASCAR Cup Series standings.

Speaking about his friendship with Jordan, he wrote “Eleven years ago I met Michael Jordan at a then-Charlotte Bobcats game and we became fast friends.

“Not long after, I joined Jordan Brand as their first Nascar athlete. Our friendship has grown over the years and now we are ready to take it to the next level.”

Michael Jordan has an astonishing net worth compiled through his successful NBA career and post-retirement portfolio – but how does it compare to fellow sporting greats Tiger Woods and LeBron James?

Jordan is considered as the greatest basketball player of all-time, winning six NBA Championships and being named as the NBA Finals MVP on six occasions.

He spent the vast majority of his NBA career as part of the infamous Chicago Bulls dynasty across two spells, and was enticed out of retirement for a brief stint with the Washington Wizards between 2001 and 2003.

Jordan signed a huge contract with Nike after his rookie season in NBA, and smashed all four of the clauses contained within it to keep the contract going. He only needed to achieve one of them.

He came up with the idea to produce the ‘Air Jordan’ shoe alongside Nike in 1984, which has retained its incredible popularity even today.

Jordan has been a spokesperson for several leading brands including Coca-Cola, McDonald’s and Gatorade, and played a leading role in the 1996 hit action/animation film Space Jam

He also gained a significant profit from the Charlotte Hornets NBA team. He spent $175 million to buy the team in 2010, before selling it for a cool $3 billion in 2023.

Overall, the 61-year-old has a net worth of $3.2 billion, placing him in third place in Forbes’ Celebrity Billionaire List for 2024.

Golf legend Woods, meanwhile, is the first athlete ever to become a billionaire while still active.

The 48-year-old has won an astonishing 82 PGA Tour majors during his career – tying him for first place alongside Sam Sneed.

Although Woods dominated the sport throughout the late 1900s and much of the 2010s, his finest major win is perhaps his most recent.

In 2019, the 43-year-old – who has seen his career plagued by a multitude of back injuries and surgeries over the years prior – entered the final round of the 2019 Masters with a two-shot deficit, but finished one stroke ahead of Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka and Xander Schauffele to win an emotional first major in 11 years.

Woods’ net worth, according to Forbes, stands at $1.4 billion.

That leaves NBA icon James, who has a net worth of $1.2 billion.

As well as his basketball career, James has made a series of shrewd investments in the business and entertainment industry.

He owns his own company, titled SpringHill.

In recent years, that has meant the 39-year-old has branced out into sports, and he holds a stake in the owners of Liverpool and the Boston Red Sox, Fenway Sports Group.

James is still, of course, an active player, and was part of the United States team that won a record-extending seventh consecutive gold medal at the men’s Olympic tournament.

Irishman McGregor has not been in action since he lost to Dustin Poirier at UFC 264 back in July of 2021.

The former UFC champion was scheduled to fight Chandler last month but pulled out due to injury.

Conor McGregor aims a dig at Jake Paul ahead of his fight against Mike Perry

It was thought that the fight could be rescheduled for later in the year but White said at his Contender Series media scrum: “We talked. We talked.

“We didn’t meet up but we talked, and yeah, he wants to fight. So, we’ll figure it out. [But] not this year. He won’t fight this year.”

McGregor then wrote in a now-deleted post: “Ah Dana, December is the date! Bring the calendar year home with a winning event! Come on now, what’s this? I am off to altitude next month to prepare. DECEMBER! Tell Dana and UFC WE WANT DECEMBER! WE DESERVE DECEMBER!”

Shortly after McGregor’s tweet, Chandler wrote: “Ah conor, the sport will move on and thrive without you. Put to bed. Laid to rest. Soon a distant memory. You’ve vastly overestimated your importance inside of this game for almost a decade. Godspeed.”

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When confirming his injury ahead of UFC 303 in June, McGregor wrote on social media: “Man we were so f***ing super ready for this fight it is absolutely gut wrenching to take. I want that new Bugatti how I gone justify to myself getting that now without banking these fights.

“We had a lapse in concentration and engaged in a training session without wearing the full protective gear and I hit the toe off the elbow and broke the toe clean. It needs a few weeks that’s it. I couldn’t justify to my team, or fans, that I make the walk hindered again. That walk has been seen. This next walk has got to be, and it will be, 100% Conor McGregor.”

He added: “The fans deserve it and we are getting close. A slight lapse in concentration and a nuisance of an injury was picked up. That’s it. Take the lesson and move forward. I will get this back. I’ve got too.

“I’ve got two fights left on my contract. I’ve got Bugattis and more yachts on my mind. I’m coming to shine. I gotta just take my time. Cos I still got yachts and Bentleys and mansions and all the rest. Ya know yaself [sic]. But ya get me, I’ll be back. See ya’s soon. See ya at the top. Chandler or not.”

The statement came from Curry’s Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr, who gave him the highest level of praise in January 2023.

It came after he heard the reaction Curry received ‘MVP’ chants in Washington following his incredible exploits on the court.

Kerr said Curry was transcending the sport and creating such a buzz wherever he went, something six-time NBA champion Jordan did in his prime with the Chicago Bulls.

“Now half the crowd has blue and yellow #30 jerseys. Steph transcends the game. He elicits an emotion from people, I think because he’s so awe inspiring with his play, that no matter where we go there are people cheering for him and can’t wait to see him perform. Because we have never seen anything like him.”

Curry has four NBA championships to his name and holds the record for the highest three-throw percentage in NBA history with 91%.

Image: Getty

He also recently came up clutch to lead the USA to gold at the Olympics in Paris.

But when asked about comparisons to His Airness in a press conference, Curry offered an incredibly humble response and spoke about the reactions from the fans.

“It’s interesting because like you said he played with him and understood what the roadshows looked like so that’s special,” Curry explained.

“I think every time you take to the floor and feel that energy, I don’t ever take it for granted because it wasn’t always like that.

“And that’s what we play the games for, in a sense of fans being part of the journey, spending their hard-earned money on tickets and creating an atmosphere like we had tonight.

“I’ll leave it to him to make that comparison but it is special with our accomplishments.”

Image: Getty

Jordan, meanwhile, doesn’t think Curry has earned the right to go in the Hall of Fame just yet.

He told NBC’s Craig Melvin, via Complex: “He’s still a great player. Not a Hall of Famer yet though.”