Maybe, maybe not. in one sense it's about money, in another sense it's not. You could argue that for some money is a yardstick by which glory is measured. And you'll never see a top fighter do it for free, but...

A guy like deLahoya really isn't in it purely for the money these last few years. He's got more money than he'll ever be able to spend. He loves the action.

Top pro athletes, whether they be into boxing, basketball, golf, whatever, arguably have a moral obligation to go for as much money as possible. You raise the bar for the top dogs, and you raise the bar for everyone else down the line. You see a ball player take a lesser contract than he can get, and he will be scorned by the other guys in the league.

case in point. In pro Golf, Joe Average is a lot better off financially when you have a superstar like Woods winning all the tournaments and making a ton of dough.