Aug 26, 2017; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Trainers tend to Conor McGregor in his corner between rounds against Floyd Mayweather Jr. (not pictured) during a boxing match at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Combat sports rivalries don’t always stay confined to the ring or cage. Sometimes the beef spills over into press conferences, social media wars, and heated interviews. These feuds can simmer for years, with both sides taking shots whenever the opportunity presents itself. The best rivalries never truly die; they just wait for the next chance to reignite.
Paulie Malignaggi knows a thing or two about keeping rivalries alive and stirring controversy. The former boxing champion has never been one to hold back his opinions about anything. Recently, he decided to take aim at an entire MMA fanbase rather than just individual fighters. And he didn’t pull any punches with his latest comments.
Paulie Malignaggi Goes Nuclear On MMA Fanbase
During a recent appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show, boxing legend Paulie Malignaggi mocked MMA fans in brutal fashion, calling them unintelligent repeatedly. Conor McGregor’s fierce rival didn’t just make a passing comment either. He went on an extended rant explaining exactly why he believes MMA fans lack intelligence compared to boxing fans. The boxing legend argued that MMA fans are too stupid to demand cross-promotion fights between different organizations.
Malignaggi used boxing as his example of how things should work. He pointed out that boxing fans want to see champions from different promotions fight each other to determine who’s truly the best. Why wouldn’t MMA fans demand to see the UFC champion fight the PFL champion or ONE Championship champion at the same weight class? According to Paulie, it’s because the fanbase doesn’t possess the intelligence to realize such matchups are even possible.
“If a fan had any level of intelligence past the point of being ret***ed, they would say ‘Wow, I want to watch the fighter who is the champion at one promotion against the other champion who is in the same weight’.…[MMA fans] don’t ask for it, because they’re too stupid to know it’s possible. They don’t want to see the PFL champion, or ONE champion, against the UFC champion. Why wouldn’t you want to see who the best in the world is?”
The former two-division world champion specifically called out MMA fans for not pushing promoters to make these super fights happen. In boxing, cross-promotional bouts are common because fans demand them loudly enough. But in MMA, Dana White has repeatedly said he’s not interested in co-promoting fights with other organizations. Malignaggi believes fans should be rioting over this, but instead they just accept whatever the UFC gives them.
Paulie Malignaggi’s Rivalry WIth Conor McGregor Runs Deep
Paulie Malignaggi’s hatred for MMA didn’t come out of nowhere. His fierce rivalry with Conor McGregor played a massive role in shaping his current opinions. Back in 2017, Malignaggi served as a sparring partner for McGregor (22-6) during his training camp for the Floyd Mayweather superfight. Things went sideways quickly when footage of their sparring sessions leaked online, showing moments that embarrassed the veteran boxer.
The leaked footage ignited an intense feud between the two men. Malignaggi felt disrespected by how McGregor’s team released selective clips that made him look bad. The former champion claimed the footage was edited and didn’t show the full picture of what happened during their sessions. McGregor’s team, on the other hand, used the sparring footage as promotional material to hype up the Mayweather fight.
The beef between them escalated dramatically during the global media tour for McGregor vs Mayweather. Multiple times, Malignaggi and McGregor nearly came to blows during press events. Security had to separate them on several occasions as tensions reached boiling points. That personal animosity clearly still burns inside Paulie, and it colors his views on MMA as a whole sport now.
(Image Credit: Mark J. Rebilas – Imagn Images)
mma
I am a dedicated MMA and Boxing content writer at The Playoffs. I was instantly hooked on MMA after watching the fight between Lyoto Machida vs. Gegard Mousasi back in 2014, and since then, i have been an avid writer with a deep love for the sport and its techniques, providing readers with a thorough understanding of the sport. My favorite aspect of working at The Playoffs is the creative freedom it provides. The diverse range of topics, from listicles and SEO to news articles, keeps me engaged and motivates me to continuously improve my skills! I aim to capture the excitement of the combat sports world in my writing, acting as the middleman between fighters and their die-hard fans. It is kind of like a referee, but with words!
Read more
mma 
