Conference oass::racers

205.0. "Forbes' 30 Highest Paid Athletes" by IAMOK::ALLEGREZZA (George Allegrezza @VRO) Tue Aug 14 1990 15:28

    Throw a Tantrum, Sign a Contract

    by Peter Newcomb and Christopher Palmeri

    Excerpted without permission from Forbes magazine, 8/20/90. p.68

    . . . FORBES has compiled yet another list, this one of the top earning
    athletes.  Who are the biggest winners?  Most play individual sports,
    not team sports.  One race car driver, Ayrton Senna, will make more
    money this year than the starting lineup of the Boston Celtics.

    Performing solo, individual athletes have become instantly
    recognizable all around the globe -- and instant recognition is what
    marketing people want when they get sports stars to endorse their
    products.  Thanks in good part to television and satellite transmission,
    the sports star who is recognizable in Oklahoma City is equally so in
    Osaka or Oslo . . .

    . . . Perhaps the biggest surprise on this year's list is the dramatic
    earning power of Formula One race car drivers.  When it comes to
    Formula One, which is like the Indianapolis 500 on a more twisty track
    [!], companies such as Honda and Ferrari each spend upwards of $50
    million on teams.  That has made Formula One stars among the richest
    young men in Europe.  For instance, Nigel Mansell, who races for
    Ferrari, makes $6 million a year and has his own Ferrari dealership in
    England.  Alain Prost and another driver bought a golf course in
    France.  Of course, there are occupational hazards [get ready for it
    gang: Gruesome Flaming Death! -- GA].  Ayrton Senna may not be able to
    spend much of his $9 million salary this year if his next spin through
    Monte Carlo ends in a 200 mph ball of fire.

    [a couple more pages of insipid prose follow]

    The Forbes list of the 30 highest-paid athletes (includes salary, winnings,
    and signing bonuses; "other" includes appearance money; excludes earnings
    from businesses owned by the athletes).  All figures are in millions of US
    dollars:

    						Salary &	
    Name			Sport		Winnings	Other	Total
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Tyson, Mike			boxing		27.0		1.6	28.6

    Douglas, Buster		boxing		25.0		1.0	26.0

    Leonard, Sugar Ray		boxing		12.0		1.0	13.0

    Senna, Ayrton*		auto racing	 9.0		1.0	10.0

    Prost, Alain*		auto racing	 8.0		1.0	 9.0

    Nicklaus, Jack		golf		 0.6		8.0	 8.6

    Norman, Greg		golf		 1.5		7.0	 8.5

    Jordan, Michael		basketball	 2.1		6.0	 8.1

    Palmer, Arnold		golf		 0.1		8.0	 8.1

    Holyfield, Evander		boxing		 8.0		0.1	 8.1

    Becker, Boris		tennis		 1.2		6.0	 7.2

    Mansell, Nigel*		auto racing	 6.0		1.0	 7.0

    Graf, Steffi		tennis		 1.1		5.0	 6.1

    Canseco, Jose		baseball/
    				firearms	 5.5		0.5	 6.0

    Gretsky, Wayne		hockey		 3.0		3.0	 6.0

    Agassi, Andre		tennis		 1.0		4.5	 5.5

    Egberg, Stefan		tennis		 1.5		4.0	 5.5

    Lendl, Ivan			tennis		 1.3		4.0	 5.3

    Maradona, Diego		soccer		 2.0		3.0	 5.0

    Mattingly, Don		baseball	 4.5		0.3	 4.8

    Jackson, Bo			baseball/
    				football	 2.0		2.5	 4.5

    Sabatini, Gabriela		tennis		 0.5		4.0	 4.5

    Johnson, Magic		basketball	 2.5		2.0	 4.5

    Yount, Robin		baseball	 4.2		0.3	 4.5

    Montana, Joe		football	 1.4		3.0	 4.4

    Ewing, Patrick		basketball	 3.6		0.6	 4.2

    LeMond, Greg		cycling		 1.7		2.5	 4.2

    Berger, Gerhard*		auto racing	 3.0		1.0	 4.0

    Strange, Curtis		golf		 0.8		3.0 	 3.8

    Clark, Will			baseball	 3.7		0.1	 3.8

    I reckon those are underestimates - they're the basic retainers (and I
    thought Prost's was 10M), I'm sure there are bonuses and sponsorship
    deals on top of that.

    You will notice in America that the F1 racers don't do commercials.
    it is always stock film of the winners circle.  The bucks are there
    if you are good enough to win.
    

    Sort of in the same area as .0:
    
    Forbes has released the latest Forbes Four Hundred rankings of the 400
    richest people in America.  Our favorite CART factotum/car dealer/truck
    lessor/track owner/diesel engine builder, Roger Penske, made the list
    -- but just barely, at a mere US$300M.