Celebrities live quite admirable and fabulous lives. They drive expensive cars, live in luxury houses, travel around the world at will and throw lavish parties on impulse. With the advent of online celebrity magazines and social media accounts, it’s very easy to keep real-time tabs on these celebrities while admiring their money-guzzling lifestyles.
Nonetheless, not all that glitters is gold. Some of these celebs are way past their prime and don’t have the strong financial pool they could once boast of, due to retirement from their once illustrious career, sheer lack of demand for their artistry, or mismanagement of their fortune through reckless and excessive spending.
With the cash flow tap drying up, non-payable debts pilling up and depleting savings, we examine these 15 past celebrities and their love for sports cars that are possibly now beyond their reach.
15 Wesley Snipes – Aston Martin Vanquish
Wesley Snipes has had to swim in some financial stormy waters in recent times with the IRS behind the storm. Snipes was found guilty of evading some of his taxes which made him cool off in prison for three years. These distressed times led Snipes to sell off some of his prized assets, but not the Aston Martin Vanquish.
14 MC Hammer – Rolls Royce
MC Hammer was the hip hop idol of the '80s and '90s – he was worshipped. MC Hammer made so much money he thought he could never go broke. This false sense of financial security fuelled the massive lavish spending that led him to file for bankruptcy in 1996. MC Hammer had to sell off most of his assets to offset his debt – but he was pictured in Italy with a Rolls Royce in 2017.
13 Nicolas Cage – Ferrari Enzo
Nicolas Cage’s financial success got him having the strangest of cravings. He bought a haunted house renowned for its gruesome past in America and also splashed out on a dinosaur skull, among other "assets." However, he later had to sell off most of these assets to pay off his debt, but he’s believed to have held on to his Ferrari Enzo.
12 Mike Tyson – Ferrari F50
As at 18 years old, Mike Tyson was already making cool cash from knocking out big-time heavyweight boxers. By 20 he had become the youngest ever heavyweight champion of the world while earning the biggest paycheck boxing could offer. Enjoying his success, Tyson bought a lot of expensive cars, which included a Ferrari F50 valued at about $4 Million in today’s money.
11 Toni Braxton – Bentley Bentayga
Born in 1967, Toni Braxton is a singer and songwriter who enjoyed a great career success as a recording artist. Toni Braxton received several musical awards that include seven Grammys. However, Braxton claimed her record company took most of the money she ought to have made from her millions of worldwide sales. She later declared bankruptcy. Her Bentley Bentayga was a gift from her millionaire partner, Birdman.
10 Ja Rule – BMW I8
Ja Rule followed up his sale-topping debut album in 1999 with some massive and highly successful collaborations that made him one of the coolest rappers of the early 2000s. However, his demand started declining around 2006 and so did his money. Nonetheless, Ja Rule took delivery of his BMW i8 in 2014 and has meticulously driven it till now.
9 Dennis Rodman – Lamborghini Gallardo
If Dennis Rodman got a penny for each time he acted badly or broke the law he wouldn’t be on this list. Although he was a great basketball player, his career came to an anti-climactic end and so did his cash flow. With a current net worth of $500,000, it wasn’t a surprise he had to sell his Lamborghini Gallardo.
8 T Pain – Bugatti Veyron
T Pain has had a back and forth battle with bankruptcy – but he came out tops. Therefore, his improved financial management acumen won’t let him splash out unnecessarily anymore. He once narrated how he got so broke he borrowed money from a friend to get his kids Burger King. T Pain sold his major assets which include a Bugatti Veyron.
7 Jermaine Dupri – Lamborghini Murcielago
A rapper, singer, songwriter, actor and producer, Jermaine Dupri had so much talent you would never think he’ll go broke – yet he did. Some successful collaborations with big artists got the money piling up. So did his cars, houses and other luxury possessions. When the money stopped rolling in and Dupri couldn’t complete the $300,000 payment of his Lamborghini Murcielago, the car got repossessed.
6 Xzibit – Lamborghini Gallardo.
Xzibit started his music career in 1996 with a successful launch of his debut studio album At The Speed Of Life. He went on to release four more successful albums before finally leaving the music scene in 2012. Working as the host of MTV’s Pimp My Ride, Xzibit go so much fame and recognition but the show ended in 2007. Now that the money isn’t rolling in like it used to, Xzibit might be finding it hard to maintain his dear Lamborghini Gallardo.
5 O. J. Simpson – Ferrari Testarossa
One of the best running backs in the NFL history, O. J. Simpson is now more famous for his protracted legal battles and subsequent conviction. Simpson was famously charged and acquitted for the murder of his ex-wife and her friend. However, in 2007 he was arrested and convicted for armed robbery and kidnapping. Simpson is a sports car enthusiast but his Ferrari Testarossa’s whereabouts remain unclear.
4 John Elway – Dodge Viper
Hall of fame Broncos quarterback John Elway made some really good investments and never looked like going broke until he and his business partner invested heavily in a Ponzi scheme. The financial loss as a result of this sent Elway into deep money woes that led him to sell his Dodge Viper through the Barrett Jackson auctions.
3 Johnny Depp – Lamborghini Aventador
Johnny Depp raked in millions of dollars for featuring in several blockbuster movies, but according to Rolling Stone, all that money is gone. Excessive spending, lawsuits, and divorce have eaten deep into Depp’s funds. That been said, he would probably need to do away with the Lamborghini Aventador on his fleet till he sorts his financial woes due to the high maintenance cost.
2 Curt Schilling – Lamborghini Gallardo
Curt Schilling made both fortune and fame as a Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. He played for the Philadelphia Phillies, Arizona Diamondbacks, and Boston Red Sox. For the love of sports cars, Schilling added a Lamborghini Gallardo to his fleet. However, after declaring bankruptcy and having a money-draining battle with mouth cancer, the Lambo became an unwanted luxury.
1 Antoine Walker – Maybach 62S
Antoine Walker knows all the bad financial decisions one should not make... because he made them all. Now, he partly works with the NBA as an advisor to rookies on financial prudence. Within 1996 and 2009, Walker netted over $108 million as salaries for playing in the NBA. However, he filed for bankruptcy in 2010. Highlights of Walker’s excessive spending include the acquisition of an underwater Miami home that costs $2.3 million and a Mercedes Maybach 62S he claimed was his worst purchase.