Evolution via sexual selection has traditionally been viewed as isolated from life-history constraints. As additionally reproductive resource allocation in males is underexplored, it is rather unclear how life-history factors have shaped lifetime investment into male sexually selected traits. Against this background, we here investigate male butterfly mating success in relation to age, nutritional status, assay condition and wing damage. As predicted, based on a low residual reproductive value, older males had a considerably higher mating success than younger males. Comparisons between virgin and once-mated males suggest that this pattern is related to age per se rather than differential ratings of the resource receptive female. We found no evidence for male body size or condition being important, supporting the notion that in weaponless animals intrinsic motivation is more important for mating success than the differences in physical properties (such as body size or condition). Flight cage experiments suggest that such differences in motivation may be masked under more natural conditions, where flight performance, having a clear impact on mating success (as evidenced by wing manipulation experiments), is likely to be crucial. We conclude that the life-history perspective is a fruitful one for gaining a better understanding of the evolution of sexually selected characters and the predictions derived from contest theory do also apply to male mating success.