MMA’s week out of the cage: Conor McGregor shows off new Rolex, Luke Rockhold shreds
Social media has become a significant part of the sporting landscape. But few, if any, professional sports match the level of interaction and personal access provided by MMA.
In an individual competition in which nearly every athlete is chasing the same goal of financial success and championship glory, it’s important for fighters to provide insight into their lives in order to connect with fans and gain followings.
Although the life of a fighter often can be mundane and repetitive, there still are moments of interest that take place outside the cage, ring or training room. Here are some of the most interesting of those occurrences from the past week.
Million-dollar bling and Swiss know-how: inside hip hop’s obsession with watches
The three most mentioned brands in lyrics remain Rolex, Audemars Piguet (specifically the Royal Oak) and Patek Philippe (usually the Nautilus) but, as more artists have become true afficionados, the range of name-drops has increased. Today, academic papers, such as Bling Bling: The Economic Discourses of Hip Hop by Alf Rehn and David Sköld, dissect the socio-political symbolism behind ‘wrist candy’, but whatever the reason for the connection, there is usually a common thread - namely that these timepieces are rare, coveted and expensive.
Sean John Combs
A man of many names, Sean Combs’ (aka Puff Daddy, Puffy, P Diddy and just plain Diddy) love of watches is well known and he has frequently been spotted wearing some of the most expensive and covetable models on the market, including a £1m Richard Mille RM 11-03 McLaren.
Tupac Shakur’s Bandanas and Hotel Bills up for Auction
In late 2019, Gotta Have Rock and Roll launched The”Rock & Roll Pop Culture Auction,” which included a vast array of collectible memorabilia from artists that included Michael Jackson, Lil Kim, the Beatles and Banksy. The sale has now received a fresh array of goods, including seven new Tupac pieces that range from recognizable to niche.
Frequently seen wearing one of his many bandannas, Tupac’s headwear of choice became a signature of sorts, making the two examples including in this auction the collection’s crown jewels. Provided by “a very close family friend of Tupac’s,” blue pre-tied and untied red options are both on hand, each estimated to sell for $2,000 USD to $4,000 USD.
Elsewhere, the auction offers a Polaroid photograph of Tupac with his Outlaw Immortalz group (estimated to sell for at least $2,000 USD), a handwritten envelope that held a letter sent from Tupac to a woman named Simi Chouhan ($2,000 USD), an original Death Row Records press release for “All Eyez On Me Book 1 & 2” ($200 USD) and bills from Tupac’s 1996 Mondrian Hotel stay, complete with signed receipt ($200 USD). Each item is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity.
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View the new Tupac items on Gotta Have Rock and Roll’s website, with bidding set to end at the beginning of April. At time of writing, only three of the seven lots have bids, meaning several are likely to remain available until a buyer surfaces.
Most recently, Shakur’s “Me Against the World” re-emerged for its 25th anniversary in a new vinyl edition.