Home Australia Surprising reason The Block billionaire Adrian Portelli gifted $50,000 to Channel Nine star Alex Cullen

Surprising reason The Block billionaire Adrian Portelli gifted $50,000 to Channel Nine star Alex Cullen

0 comments
Portelli took to social media saying: 'We have a winner! Well played, sir,' and sharing what appeared to be a $50,000 wire transfer to Cullen (pictured).

Adrian Portelli has reportedly gifted Channel Nine presenter Alex Cullen $50,000 for being the first person to use his nickname ‘McLaren Man’ on air.

Last week, the billionaire asked Australian media to refer to him as “McLaren Man”, in a surprising departure from his former nickname of “Mr. Lambo”, which stuck after arriving at a The Block auction. in a Lamborghini.

Cullen seemed very eager to please, and dropped the name during a Today Show crossover from the Australian Open on Friday morning.

Portelli took to social media saying: ‘We have a winner! Well played, sir,” and sharing what appeared to be a $50,000 wire transfer to Cullen.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Channel Nine for comment.

It comes after Portelli this week denied charges of running an illegal lottery.

The 35-year-old is charged with nine counts of conducting or assisting in conducting an illegal lottery in South Australia, while his company Xclusive Tech Pty Ltd, trading under the name LMCT+, is charged with 10 counts of the same offence. .

He was not required to appear in the Adelaide Magistrates Court on Wednesday, where lawyer Ben Lodge entered a not guilty plea on behalf of Portelli and Xclusive Tech.

Portelli took to social media saying: ‘We have a winner! Well played, sir,’ and sharing what appeared to be a $50,000 wire transfer to Cullen (pictured).

The billionaire now wants to get the 'McLaren Man'

Cullen dropped Portelli's new nickname during a live crossover from the Australian Open on Friday.

Portelli last week asked the media to call him ‘McLaren Man’, instead of his usual nickname of ‘Mr Lambo’, earned after an appearance on The Block.

The charges, instigated by South Australia’s Consumer and Business Services, allege Portelli’s company did not have a license to run lotteries in South Africa.

Portelli’s company offers its members subscriptions to a “rewards club,” which includes entries to win cars and properties.

Under South African law, any commercially promoted lottery with prizes over $5,000 needs a license to operate and entries must be free.

“The lottery’s top prize was a property located in Gisborne, Victoria, as seen on the Australian television show The Block, or a cash prize of $3,000,000,” court documents state. .

Winning the prize “involved an element of chance” but the defendant “was not licensed to run the lottery in South Australia”.

Portelli and his company face a possible maximum fine of $190,000. He has said on social media that if convicted, he would “round it up to $200,000.”

You may also like