June 2012: Amid a horde of reporters, Floyd Mayweather Jr. emerged from a white car. With quick steps and a bowed head, the boxer dashed toward the Clark County Detention Center—his home for the next three months. Just behind him, his best friend 50 Cent, dressed in a white tee shirt and a face half-covered by a cap entered the building with swift steps to bid Mayweather goodbye. The scene, though unusual to imagine right now, was reminiscent of a familiar event the year prior.

Donning a familiar white tee shirt, the rapper stood in the courtroom beside the boxer as he listened to the judge’s decision while looking at the ground. Following a May 5 fight vs Miguel Cotto (which the latter ultimately lost), Mayweather would be required to move from his 18-room mansion to a 10-by-6 cell on June 1, for a domestic violence incident. “He’ll be alright,” the Get Rich or Die Tryin’ star had said back then, before coming back to pick up his friend exactly two months later—after he was released early for good behavior. And that’s exactly the kind of bond ‘Money’ and 50 Cent shared. One that dabbled across brotherhood, loyalty, business and everything in between.

The world had been a witness to this camaraderie since early 2007 when the rapper would often walk Mayweather Jr into the ring—most notably before the fighter defeated Oscar De La Hoya in May 2007, during a wrestling match against Big Show at Wrestlemania XXIV, and obviously against Cotto. However, by September 2012, it was clear that a rift had started taking shape. First, it started with light jabs by the rapper during interview appearances, and collaborating with his former friend’s greatest rival, Manny Pacquiao. Soon, it translated to public Twitter feuds that left the world wondering what went wrong. In November that year, Mayweather Jr tweeted, “A male boxing gro—e.. hold my belts because your album sales have declined,” followed by an expected back and forth. Though, it wasn’t long before the actual reason behind the beef surfaced.

$2 million. That’s what 50 Cent alleged his ex-bestie still owes. Why? Well, let’s get to that in a bit, and things have started heating up again. The reason? Well, money. For months, whispers have suggested how Jr might be headed toward a potential bankruptcy. And each step of the way, the Grammy Award-winning singer has made sure he takes some well-directed shots at the boxing veteran. The Grand Rapids-born Olympic bronze medalist retired in 2017 and later embarked on an exhibition career. At the same time, with a keen eye on real estate, the world’s richest boxer began shaping a post-retirement life as a business mogul. In recent months, reports of Mayweather’s property purchases have made headlines. So why the sudden bankruptcy rumors? For one, it’s an old whisper resurfacing. Still, the latest gossip has opened the door to a wave of speculation and, naturally, a latest public jab on April 16. Alongside a video discussing Mayweather’s financial instability, the ‘In da Club’ artist wrote, “Damn, they talking bad about Champ, even though we be beefing he still my brother.” 50 Cent didn’t stop at sympathy. In a follow-up, he implied that unlike others in Mayweather’s circle, he’s never relied on him…

Suggesting that Mayweather surrounds himself with yes-men who depend on him financially or emotionally, the 2010 Grammy Award winner said, “We be falling out because I don’t need him. He use to people being co dependent.” However, just a few days ago, 50 Cent’s tone wasn’t nearly as conciliatory. Roughly a month ago, in an interview with Jimmy Fallon, Floyd Mayweather, while jokingly denying that he ‘didn’t buy New York,’ spoke about his real estate portfolio. He said, “I don’t know the exact number. I own, right now, somewhere upwards of 100 buildings or more; I think 99% of my buildings are in New York City.”

So picking holes in the boxing great’s claims, the rap mogul commented in another post that featured the fighter with a long nose like Pinocchio, “Over a hundred buildings and 99% in New York. 😆 LOL, THAT’S CAP, CHAMP. WE SHOULD SLAP THE SH!T OUT YOU. LMAO GLG🚦GreenLightGang 🎥let’s work !”

Then, a few days earlier, another post had 50 Cent laughing and taunting that it’s time Mayweather opted for an exhibition fight to refill his supposedly dwindling coffers. The ‘21 Questions‘ hit-maker giggled, “Damn, Champ, they caught you CAPPIN 🧢 Hahahaha 😆Time for another exhibition! LOL @50centaction, check out my channel.”

Having said that, the feud reportedly started after the Olympic bronze medalist dubiously took around $2 million from him.

During an interview on Power 106 in November ’12, the rapper claimed that prior to Jr’s prison sentence, the latter asked 50 to help with Mayweather Promotions. “I took a look and realized there is no Mayweather Promotions. There’s no LLC. There’s no seal. It’s not incorporated. When he says help him with Mayweather Promotions and it’s not there, I say, ‘Okay, I know what he means.’ He wants me to put it together for him.” And that’s exactly what he did. He helped launch The Money Team Promotions, only to be left hanging. As alleged by the artist, Mayweather Jr reportedly got out of jail, and started spending money on other things instead of paying 50 back for his help and financial investments in the venture.

Old wounds and new whispers

The beef between Floyd Mayweather and 50 Cent goes back years. Once close friends, their relationship eventually turned sour and publicly acrimonious. So much so that 50 Cent once even mocked Mayweather’s reading abilities, as fans might recall.

As for the chatter surrounding Mayweather’s finances, it’s not entirely new. A few months ago, Eddie Hearn also voiced similar concerns. During an interview, the Matchroom boss mentioned, “I don’t think he’s got the money he says. I don’t think he needs the money, but when you’ve got that lifestyle, when he’s spending what he’s spending, you start to wonder.”

However, in January, Mayweather finally got a chance to address Hearn’s comments directly. In the promoter’s presence, the boxing legend responded, “So one day somebody said, coz you know I don’t have social media on my phone, so they showed me Eddie. Eddie was like, Floyd Mayweather ain’t got no money. That’s why he doing exhibition.”

Fortunately, the exchange remained lighthearted. Addressing an associate nearby, Mayweather then joked that Eddie Hearn, struggling to accept certain realities, has a knack for spinning tales out of thin air. Whether there’s any truth to the rumors about Mayweather’s finances remains to be seen. For now, fans will have to wait and watch.

What’s your take? Are the bankruptcy rumors just smoke? Or is there real fire behind the buzz?