Win or lose, Canadian rapper Aubrey Drake, better known as Drake, puts his money where his mouth is. More so that he has the resources to support his gambling habit, writes Iyke Bede
In the betting world, getting backed by Canadian rapper Drake (born Aubrey Drake) in a bet signifies a sort of bad omen. If Drake endorses you in a wager to win, it is most likely you will lose. This trend dates back to when he lost a bet of $60,000 to fellow musician French Montana at a basketball game during the 2014 NBA All-Star Weekend.
His loss, however, has never deterred his hunger to back his favourites. Perhaps it might be that he could afford to bear the losses that slowly chip away at his $250 million fortune or that he has a vengeful spirit to claim victory.
These days, Drake no longer wagers games in sporting games geographically limited to the Americas. He's become voracious and stakes in the big leagues that attract the eyeballs of international audiences - the Grand Prix, UFC, and the World Cup.
The change in taste for placing bigger stakes also mirrors his career trajectory, having conquered digital sales with his multi-platinum albums and simultaneously landed multiple tracks in the Billboard 100 top 10 in the same week. Sadly, this luck has failed to reflect in his wins.
Just last year, Drake won millions from the UFC and other platforms. However, his losses are resounding, drowning out any chirps of those wins. From 2022 to 2023, he lost more millions in what most people now term the 'Drake Curse'.
Last October, the 36-year-old Grammy winner staked over $800,000 in a double bet that Barcelona would annihilate Real Madrid and Arsenal would bombard Leeds out of the UEFA tournament. Arsenal triumphed, but Barcelona suffered a 3-1 loss. If things had gone Drake's way, the staked game would have earned him a win of $3.9 million.
By December, Kylian Mbappe gave Drake a good run for his money at the Qatar 2022 World Cup after scoring two goals within a minute's frame to level out Argentina's lead of 2-0, thus smashing all of Drakes hope to cart away a win of £2.3 million on an £818,710 stake.
Although Argentina eventually won, crowning Messi with another milestone in his career, Drake lost on a technicality of betting that Argentina would win inside regulation time.
Earlier in May 2022, Drake felt lucky and decided to place his first-ever F1 bet on Charles Leclerc to the tune of £186,000. His luck ran smoothly for 27 laps at the Spanish Grand Prix with Leclerc in the lead. It was almost certain he'd win until his Ferrari ran out of power, sending him to retire from the race, costing Drake the sum of £470,000 in winnings.
Coming into the new year, the 'HYFR' rapper suffered another huge loss when he placed a bet that Jake Paul would defeat Tommy Furry by knockout during their grudge match that was staged in Saudi Arabia.
"F***! This is Drake's fault! Drake, bro, why did you do this to me?" Paul jokingly referenced the 'Curse' after losing by a split decision in favour of Furry. The match cost Drake £335,000 and denied him his wins of £1.2 million.
To be sure, Drake and The Last Stylebender have had a long-standing relationship in their history of the UFC. In July of 2022, Drake put a call through to Adesanya to inform him of his 'light million' bet on his match against Jared Cannonier at UFC 276. Adesanya won the middleweight championship.
But the 'Drake Curse' returned during UFC 281 when he wagered a staggering £1.7 million on Adesanya to win against Alex Pereira at Madison Square Garden, Adesanya suffered a technical knockout. It was a bad outing for Drake, yet he doubled down on his bet on the Nigerian martial artist at UFC 287 that went down days ago.
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
With $500,000, Drake wagered Adesanya's victory against Pereira for an $885,000 win. He went further to risk $400,000 on Adesanya knocking out Pereira. The stake had a potential win of $1.84 million, bringing the total winnings to $2.7 million. Drake won both bets, ending his losing streak so far.
Although the outcome of Drake's future victories and defeats remains uncertain, what is certain is his unwavering dedication to constantly push the boundaries, demonstrate unwavering loyalty to his favourites, and inspire discussions such as these. So, let's raise a toast to him for now!
