Conor McGregor’s long-term rival Paulie Malignaggi has come out in semi-support of ‘Notorious’ ahead of his return fight against Michael Chandler.
The bitter feud between Conor McGregor and Paulie Malignaggi continues to be a source of entertainment for combat sports fans around the world, with the former professional boxer now coming out in support of ‘Notorious’ ahead of his return bout at UFC 303 on June 27 – albeit in typical ‘Magic Man’ fashion.
Paulie Malignaggi breaks down Conor McGregor vs Michael Chandler
Speaking via TalkSport MMA, Malignaggi said that fans shouldn’t expect a vintage performance from either fighter on June 29 as “both Connor and [Michael] Chandler are sort of on a little bit of a negative part of their career,” at 35 years old and 38 years old respectively.
“I think this is just sort of a way to see who’s got something left,” he argued, stating that the bout remains “a loser is eliminated [from the division] type of fight.”
The long-term rival explained that he’s feelings surrounding McGregor vs Chandler are similar to those back when ‘Notorious’ stepped into the octagon to rematch Dustin Poirier in 2021.
“You know, Poirier really was on his way down and I think they were trying to use him to bring back Conor McGregor and Poirier ended up beating him twice and then, you know, end up getting one or two other good fights out of it.”
“So, I don’t know if this is sort of the same situation where they’re trying to see who’s got more left here if it’s Chandler or McGregor,” said Malignaggi, before breaking down how McGregor still holds the right style that can cause ‘Iron’ problems:
“I do think Chandler has some trouble with stand-up fighters, he’s more of a wrestler. I do think stylistically McGregor has a bit of an advantage here if Chandler cannot close that gap and get it to the ground and use his wrestling background.”
Ultimately, at 38 years old and after being finished in three of his last four fights, Malignaggi went against Chandler and sided with his former foe to get the job done at UFC 303 in June.
“I’m not sure really what kind of chin or how his legs are at this point, Chandler, you know? So, I’m not sure if he’s going to be able to close that gap correctly… If I put on my analyst hat, I probably favor McGregor to win the fight.”
Sadly, the ship’s sailed on a potential boxing fight between the two
Whilst McGregor is set to make his MMA return next month, not many fans would be surprised to see the iconic UFC fighter once again make a switch to professional boxing for the final stage of his career.
Unfortunately, Malignaggi has dismissed the idea of burying the hatchet with McGregor in either the boxing, BKFC, or BYB rings, although it’s not difficult to understand why:
“No, I think when I passed 40 years old, I think I was done. I would definitely have had a goal of it years ago, even for a couple of years after we had the whole fiasco, I probably would have given it a shot.”
That being said, Malignaggi did note that he would still be open to fighting McGregor if the infamous sparring session video was shared online:
“Maybe if he releases the entire sparring footage, I’d maybe give it a shot but I don’t think I’d ever fight him again.”
“Unless he released the entire footage first; For some people, there’s always a price but there’s also things more than money, I’ll be 44 this year and I don’t really want to fight again.”
Conor McGregor vs Michael Chandler goes down on June 29, live from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas for UFC 303.