Nine presenter stood down over cash prize from ‘Lambo guy’
Nine sports presenter Alex Cullen has been stood down from his role after allegedly accepting a $50,000 cash prize from a high-profile businessman in exchange for rebranding him from “Lambo Guy” to “McLaren Guy” on air.
Billionaire property investor Adrian Portelli gained notoriety as “the Lambo guy” in 2022 after arriving at a house auction for The Block in a yellow Lamborghini. He ended up splashing nearly $32 million on Block houses in 2022, 2023 and 2024, when he bought all five properties.
Alex Cullen at an internal Nine event in 2023.Credit: Yianni Photography
Portelli more recently complained that the nickname was disrespectful and last week offered $50,000 to “the first TV journalist who calls me McLaren Guy and NOT Lambo Guy”, posting a photograph on his social media page of a McLaren Senna GTR being hoisted by crane into his Melbourne penthouse.
Cullen rose to the challenge on Friday morning during a cross from the Australian Open to Today’s Sydney studio, where he referred to Portelli by the preferred nickname. The reference led to a jovial exchange with Today host Karl Stefanovic, who repeated the moniker and suggested that they split the winnings.
The Instagram callout that Adrian Portelli posted on his account.Credit: Instagram
But Portelli gave the prize to Cullen, posting a receipt of the bank transfer to his Instagram page with the comment: “We have a winner! Well played sir.”
Nine, the owner of this masthead, stood down Cullen on Saturday after the gift was reported by the Herald Sun.
Nine said it took the matter “extremely seriously”.
“Appropriate action has been promptly taken, including arranging for the funds to be returned,” a spokeswoman said.
“While we review the circumstances in which this occurred, Alex has agreed to stand down.”
Cullen and Stefanovic have been approached for comment.
Portelli, who founded the business Xclusive Tech Pty Ltd, is currently facing charges in South Australia for allegedly conducting or assisting an unlawful lottery. His company faces the same charges.
Adrian Portelli (centre) leaves Sunshine Magistrates’ Court last month after facing driving charges.Credit: Joe Armao
The company offers members subscriptions to a “rewards club”, including entries to win cars and properties. Under South Australian law, any trade promotions with prizes exceeding $5000 need a licence to operate and entries must be free of charge.
Portelli last week denied the charges instigated by South Australia’s Consumer and Business Services, which has alleged that the business did not hold a licence to conduct lotteries in that state.
Court documents said the major prize was a property in Gisborne, Victoria, that had featured on The Block, or a cash prize of $3 million. Winning the prize “involved an element of chance”, the documents alleged.
Portelli and his company face a maximum penalty of $190,000, which he has told social media followers he will round up to $200,000 if convicted.
More recently, he has invited his followers to make their thoughts known to the Herald Sun journalist who first reported that Cullen had been stood down, offering a $5000 reward for the best comment posted to her profile.
“If journos want to bully, let’s bully back,” he wrote.
With Abe Maddison
Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.