A bidder stepped into the unknown Sunday afternoon, paying 2.8 million yuan at auction to snap up the sponsorship rights to Bird's Nest Stadium's staging of a Guinness world record attempt at endurance tightrope walking.

After the auctioneer opened the bidding, a 40-minute seesaw battle between bidders number 99 and 9 ensued.

Hong Changshan, bidder number 99 and chairman of Xiangfan Jialong Co Ltd, told METRO the final price he paid far exceeded his bottom line of 1 million yuan.