Over the past four months Paulie Malignaggi has reintroduced himself to boxing fans in a profound way. Leading into his August 22nd bout against Juan Diaz, Malignaggi was extremely adamant about the uncertainty he faced going into his opponent’s backyard of Houston, Texas. The Lone Star State has been host to some suspicious occurrences in the sport over the past few years and many have been leery about heading into Texas to do battle in recent times. What would transpire on the night of the 22nd and after would only heighten things.
Being looked at as an underdog to Diaz’ relentless and aggressive style, Malignaggi surprised many by coming out of the gates fast and easily controlling the first round. Fighting with a swagger that hadn’t been seen from him in quite some time, Malignaggi’s speed and combinations gave his younger foe plenty to think about. As the fight wore on Diaz would settle down and have his own moments of success, specifically fighting on the inside, and when the dust had settled the bout looked as though it could go either way. Then came the scorecards.
Judges Raul Caiz, David Sutherland, and Gale Van Hoy would all see the bout in Diaz’ favor but it was Van Hoy’s card in particular that caused quite a ruckus, as he penciled in a 118-110 tally that was far from reflective of the bout’s competitiveness. Malignaggi was obviously visibly shocked and upset, letting all his feelings and emotions out during his post fight interview. Holding nothing back, Malignaggi ripped into the boxing system and the state of Texas in particular for what had transpired and claimed that he knew ahead of time what he was getting into.
The post fight rant would go on to become somewhat of a cult classic as Malignaggi’s interview was featured on numerous Youtube clips and people seemed to gravitate towards the Brooklyn fighter’s frustrations. Despite losing to Diaz, Malignaggi had endeared himself to fans across the world by simply letting his thoughts loose.
Following the contest Malignaggi has been far from shy about what transpired and made it well known that he desired a rematch with the humble Diaz. Malignaggi would end up receiving his wish as his second encounter with the former Lightweight champion will serve as the main event on this weekend’s HBO Boxing After Dark telecast. Heading into the bout Malignaggi is riding a confident surge, as evidenced by all of his pre fight interviews and even his Facebook updates but there has been some other news that have propelled him into the spotlight as well.
Within the past few weeks Malignaggi drew widespread attention of a different kind for questioning the validity of Manny Pacquiao’s recent run of success in the sport. In a Boxing Scene interview with Ryan Burton, Malignaggi insinuated that the Filipino icon is up to something behind the scenes.
“I think there is something up with Manny Pacquiao,” Malignaggi would go on to claim.. “I am not going to get into it. I think people will understand what I am saying. Full blown welterweights don’t take those type of punches from Miguel Cotto the way he took them with total disregard for his power nor do they hurt him with every punch they hit him with.”
Malignaggi’s words are brutal in many ways and Paulie doesn’t buy Pacquiao’s recent run of success at all it appears. Digging in further, Malignaggi noted how improbable it is for a fighter to rise in weight and perform the way Pacquiao has been doing.
“This guy is coming up in weight and doing all of these things,” Malignaggi continued. “There is something up with this guy but that’s as far as I am going to go into it. Floyd Mayweather (Sr.) has gotten into it a little bit. There have been other fighters who have mentioned it. I am not going to get into no controversy. I am going to leave it at that. There is something that seriously makes me feel weird about Pacquiao. I am going to leave it at that.”
A few weeks later Malignaggi would be featured as a guest on the BoxingTruth radio show and again insinuated his beliefs in regards to Pacquiao. Speaking with a venomous tongue, Malignaggi questioned exactly how Pacquiao was able to rise in weight while maintaining his shredded physique. Malignaggi went on to state that Pacquiao has looked like ‘King Kong’ since his drubbing of David Diaz last year and continued that it simply wasn’t realistic for a fighter past the age of 28 to continue rising in weight the way Pacquiao has.
Strong words from Malignaggi but you have to wonder where his accusations stem from. Whether people like it or not, Pacquiao has tested clean and there hasn’t been any proof that would suggest he gave himself any advantages illegally. While Malignaggi is just one in a group of many who were shocked to see Pacquiao perform so well at the higher weight levels the last thing that should be done is to accuse the man of cheating without any solid or concrete evidence.
As a fighter there is a lot to like about Paulie Malignaggi. I always saw a great deal of flash in his game but was pleasantly surprised over the following years to discover how solid his heart was. His gave and take affair with Miguel Cotto, albeit a losing effort, showed the signs of a fighter who wasn’t looking for an easy way out and one who had the ability to bite down when things got rough.
His title winning performance against Lovemore N’Dou in June of 2007 is probably his most noteworthy performance to date, as he showed great ring generalship along with the will to win against his hard charging opponent from Australia. In that bout Malignaggi showed just how complete of a fighter he can be and despite not having any serious firepower in his fists he was able to drop N’Dou with a beautifully timed right hand.
There is much to hold on to with Malignaggi as a person as well. I remember interviewing him in April of 2008 and our conversation covered a variety of topics, including his interests outside of boxing. Speaking passionately, Malignaggi talked in great length about how important his loved ones are to his life, stating that friendship is built on ‘love and honesty’. It’s obvious that Malignaggi wears his emotions on his sleeves. It’s what has endeared him to many and turned him away to others, but at the end of the day it’s who he is.
Come this Saturday night at the UIC Pavilion in Chicago, Illinois, however, all of the talking will come to a stop. For a fighter who has been making headlines at a rapid rate for all of his recent verbal epilogues, Malignaggi will find himself back in the lion’s den against an opponent desperate for a clear win. None of the accusations or tirades will be on anyone’s mind; the only thing that will matter will be exactly how well Malignaggi is able to deal with Diaz’ attack inside of the ring.
When the bells rings and the fight is over Malignaggi will certainly have plenty to say following the contest, but I think its best to judge him when he is inside of the ropes applying his craft. They say that actions speak louder than words and on Saturday night Paulie Malignaggi will be the one being judged in more ways than one.
