McGregor hires Malignaggi as sparring partner

Whatever social media spat there was between Conor McGregor and Paulie Malignaggi, it all appears to be water under the bridge now. It wasn’t very long ago that Malignaggi stated that he would “knock the beard off” McGregor, and now he’ll get the chance to do just that — but only with the big gloves and headgear on.

Malignaggi has revealed in recent days that he’s been contacted by McGregor’s camp to bring him in as a sparring partner for his upcoming fight with Floyd Mayweather, and at that time they were just working out the details. The arrangement seems all set now, and Maliginaggi admits that the whole thing was kind of surprising considering that he and McGregor weren’t exactly on the best of terms.

"I did call him out, and I think that shows the character of the man,” Malignaggi said. “He could have said, 'Screw that kid, he called me out, I'm not going to put him in my training camp'. I think it shows the competitive spirit and the willingness to want to learn, on the part of McGregor.”

Malignaggi will naturally bring more boxing experience and expertise than any of McGregor’s other sparring partners, and is expected to join McGregor’s camp once he begins his Stateside preparations.