Floyd Mayweather nicknames: why “Money” and “Pretty Boy”?

Floyd Mayweather Jr, who takes on Youtuber Deji Olatunji in an exhibition fight on Sunday, November 13th in Dubai, had 50 sanctioned bouts in his illustrious career, winning them all.

Mayweather has been known by three main nicknames during this storied time in boxing: “Pretty Boy”, “Money” and “TBE”.

Why is Mayweather called “Money”, “Pretty boy”?

“Pretty Boy”

Before Mayweather retired from professional boxing for a third time in 2017, he won world titles across five weight classes. And because of coming away from fights with no cuts and bruises, he picked up the moniker “Pretty Boy” - thanks in no small part to his renowned defensive prowess.

The nickname was coined by fellow boxers during Mayweather’s time as an amateur in the early to mid-1990s - a period that brought an Olympic gold medal in the Atlanta ‘96 featherweight boxing tournament, and was a nod to famous 1930s gangster Charles Arthur “Pretty Boy” Floyd.

“Money”

Later in his career, Mayweather thought about moving away from his “Pretty Boy” tag and rebranded himself as Floyd “Money” Mayweather. He explained the reason behind the change during a media day in April 2012:

“The nickname ‘Money’ came from when I was joking and throwing money into the camera, so it stuck with me,” he said. “You can’t be a 35-year-old man calling yourself ‘Pretty Boy.’”

It’s by no means an inappropriate name for a sportsman who has accumulated a net worth that Forbes magazine estimated at $285m in 2018, and who once memorably boasted to a sparring partner: “My [pay] check looks like your social security number.”

“TBE”

The 45-year-old also refers to himself by the initials “TBE”, which stand for “The Best Ever”, a nickname that requires no further explanation.