Michael Spinks, better known by his stage name Jinx, was born on the 13th July 1956 in Saint Louis, Missouri, USA. He is best known for being a former professional boxer, who competed in the light-heavyweight and heavyweight divisions and was the world champion as well as an Olympic gold medalist. He is also recognized as the only one who defeated Larry Holmes twice. His professional career has been active since 1977.
Have you ever wondered how rich Michael Spinks is, as of early 2016? According to authoritative sources, it has been estimated that the total sum of Michael’s net worth is as high as $100,000, with the main source of this amount of money being, of course, his professional boxing career as well as his career as a trainer. Legal proceedings still on-going mean that Michael’s net worth may increase somewhat.
Michael Spinks Net Worth $100,000
Michael Spinks was raised with six siblings by single mother Kay Spinks, as his father left them when he was four. Before his boxing career started, Michael worked in a gym, and thanks to his older brother the heavyweight champion Leon Spinks, he began training to box.
Before Michael`s professional career began, he was a successful amateur boxer, winning several titles and awards, including the Golden Gloves Light Middleweight Championship, and a gold medal at the Summer Olympics held in Montreal in 1976. After that, he worked as a toilet cleaner in a chemical factory in St. Louis, before becoming a professional boxer in 1977, after Butch Lewis convinced him to try out.
His professional career lasted until 1988, when he decided to retire, after his first and only loss, to the one and only Mike Tyson. While his career lasted Spinks had a record of 31 wins and only one loss. He made a professional debut by winning against Eddie Benson on the 16th April 1977, and four years later, he won his first title, defeating Eddie Mustafa Muhammad for the WBA light-heavyweight title, which only increased his net worth and popularity. Little by little, Michael became one of the best boxers, defending his title several times, against such boxers as Vonzell Johnson, Murray Sutherland, and Jerry Celestine, among others. In 1983, he became a Lineal light heavyweight champion by defeating Dwight Muhammad Quawi, and two years later won the Lineal heavyweight title, by winning against Larry Holmes. He retained his titles several times, fighting against boxers Steffen Tangstad, and Gerry Cooney, which only added further to his net worth, until he lost to Tyson in 1988.
Since he decided to retire, Michael rarely appears in public, however, it is known that he has trained several boxers, which has also added to his net worth. However, most recently, Michael has experienced several money problems, as his promoter and manager Butch Lewis stopped paying Michael`s bills, and after Lewis` death in 2011, several unpaid bills came to Michael`s address, which only had a negative effect on his net worth.
Thanks to his accomplishment, Michael has been inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame and into the International Boxing Hall of Fame. He has been rated as one of the ten greatestlight-heavyweights of all time by Boxrec and The International Boxing Research Organization. Speaking about his personal life, Michael Spinks was married to Sandy Massey until 1983, when she was killed in a car accident, and with whom he has a daughter.
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