Following his open media workout on Friday, Conor McGregor fielded questions from media members about his recent 12-round sparring session with Paulie Malignaggi and Paulie's subsequent decision to quit camp. There has only been limited footage released on the sparring session, which was obviously favorable to Conor, but Conor says the rest of the session was just more of the same.
Conor also expressed some concern for Malignaggi's health, which was both hilarious and touching at the same time, all things considered.
McGregor on Malignaggi quitting his training camp and the things he's had to say in the media:
"...It shows his character in my opinion. He was looking for an exit. The spars were not good for him, he took a lot of head trauma. Straight after it we were worried. The sparring partners were actually telling us that when he was dropped back to the home that he was stumbling out of the car after the 12-rounder. He was knocked down, he was flattened against the ropes — multiple times the ropes kept him on his feet. We were worried about him. We thought the worst was out to happen, do you know what I mean?
"He was certainly badly concussed, um, and then he just got out of there and went running. I don't know, I mean I don't mind Paulie — he came in, he spoke a helluva game previous, very disrespectful to the skill set. Very disrespectful to the discipline. But no matter what a man says if they show up and try to answer that and try their best you've gotta give respect and that's what happened. He showed up, he tried his best, it didn't go his way — he got his ass whooped, he got his pride dented and then he wanted a way out.
"What better way for a guy like him to exit under a load of questions and mysterious, you know what I mean?"
On Malignaggi saying that he placed his sparring partners is terrible living quarters:
"I think it's ridiculous, I mean we have multiple houses over here — look he can say what he wants. The guy is a mouthpiece. I don't know what else to say: he came in, he got his ass whooped, he got his ego badly dented and that's it. I mean, we've sent the footage of the knockdown, we sent the footage over and I don't think they're refusing to show it so...He was flattened, what can I say. He got his ass whooped. But I like the guy! He's alright, though. He's kinda like a lovable mouthpiece, do you know what I mean? But he's alright...But it did not got well for him so...
"When I was hearing all the stuff he was saying I was like 'it's concussion talk.' The man is badly, badly concussed. I mean look at his face, he was bust up bad...
"As far as the images that got leaked — let me clear this — I didn't leak no images...the only image I released was the original one where my hands were behind my back. And that was in response to the comments where he said...'I will beat him with one hand tied behind my back.' So I released one picture of my whooping his ass with both hands behind my back. No connecting to the face shots, no him getting slapped around the ring, nothing like that.
"After the first [sparring session] he went on his world tour and came back, he got his ass whooped and he got dropped. One of the pictures got leaked, I don't know how it got leaked, when I found out I pulled it back. Obviously the internet's the internet and it blew up and he had such an ego about it and so much pride and then he went running.
"But it worked out perfect for him because he didn't wanna show up and go again. He couldn't! It's just — it wasn't in him, so that's it. It worked out great. He got to exit under a cloud of questions and exactly what a mouthpiece like him wants, so that's that."
On if he's concerned Malignaggi might leak inside information to Floyd Mayweather:
"Let him. Let him speak. I'm sure he has. Let him speak. You can't prepare for me! You can't prepare for me. You can't prepare for the movement, you can't prepare for any of it...There's nobody in the game that moves like me, that strikes like me, and that has the confidence like me so let them speak, let them talk. It's all good.
On how he sees his fight with Mayweather playing out:
"I'm gonna knock him out bad. He's too small. I know he's fast, I know he's got good reflexes, I know he's experienced — I don't care! I hit you, you fall. And that's it! He will be unconscious — if we go 8 ounces, which we are very close to I believe, there's commission hearings and all so I'm very pleased about that, he will be unconscious inside of two rounds. One round — only for the 10 second count I will give him maybe surviving into the second. But if it's not and it's 10 ounces — maybe four rounds. But under four rounds he is certainly unconscious and that's it!"
If I'm sure of anything it's that this won't be the end of the war of words between Conor and Paulie. Just give it a couple days...