Malignaggi upbeat for a change

Paulie Malignaggi is feeling pretty good about things for a change.

The loquacious New Yorker has been open about his frustrations recently. The two-plus years he said he wasted with Buddy McGirt as his trainer. The prediction that he would get screwed fighting Juan Diaz in Houston. And his marvelous soliloquy after the fight saying I told you so.

He said he can’t help himself. He’s the kind of guy who “let’s things eat at me.”

Now, though, with a new trainer -- Sherif Younan -- and a rematch with Diaz on Saturday in Chicago, Malignaggi doesn’t seem to be so certain the powers that be have it in for him.

“I feel like a new man,” he told RingTV.com

Malignaggi has been an angry man in regard to his relationship with McGirt. The fighter claims the trainer had him change his style from a slick-boxing mover to a more-stationary fighter, thus abandoning his strength.

The result was a victory over Lovemore N’Dou, giving Malignaggi his only major title, but also a crushing knockout loss to Ricky Hatton in by far the highest-profile fight of his nine-year career.

Malignaggi said the Hatton fight was his golden opportunity to establish himself as a star –- and claim all that goes with it –- but he ended up with little more than a tarnished reputation.

“I wasted two years of my life,” he said. “It ruined my name in boxing; it ruined my name for pound-for-pound consideration. I lost a lot of money. I lost my chance to make a name in boxing. I’m picking up the pieces but I may never be able to pick up all the pieces I lost. … If I beat Hatton, I get recognized as the best junior welterweight in the world.

“I don’t know if I can do that now in one night (against Diaz). Hatton was my opportunity. I don’t know if I’ll ever get that opportunity again.”

Malignaggi has publicly criticized McGirt, who he says hasn’t taken enough responsibility for the fighter’s misfortune. McGirt has said to several reporters that Malignaggi should stop blaming him and take responsibility himself.

Now, however, McGirt is tired of talking about it.

“I don’t pay attention to it anymore,” he said. “If that’s how he feels, that’s OK. I have more important things to worry about than what Paulie Malignaggi thinks of me. It’s quite obvious that he blames other people (for his problems).

“In a word, f--- him. I wish him well. I hope he becomes champion again. But what he has to say … I really don’t care.”

Malignaggi actually did take some responsibility. He said he made the decision to stick with McGirt in part because he wasn’t clear on the damage being done and he wanted to be a nice guy. Ultimately, the disaster against Hatton -– whom Malignaggi said was “one of the most-ordinary fighters I ever faced” –- forced his hand.

Then came the first fight against Diaz.

Malignaggi took the fight because he felt he didn’t have a better option after the loss to Hatton but wasn’t happy about the contract. He complained that Diaz had every advantage -– the hometown, the judges, the catch weight, the ring, everything.

Diaz won a unanimous decision in what almost everyone agreed was a very close fight. However, the ridiculous scorecard of judge Gale Van Hoy –- 118-110 for Diaz -– made Malignaggi look like a prophet. And immediately after the fight, he said so, delivering a passionate condemnation about all that is wrong with boxing.

He might’ve earned the rematch as much with his speech as his performance, which was a lot better than many expected from him.

“It was spur of the moment,” he said of his speech. “I’d just gotten robbed two minutes before. I had it in my mind that it might happen, though. I had a lot of pent up energy with all the pre-fight negotiations. Then, when it happened like I said it would, I just let it all out.

“I was disgusted. I still am. At least we’re fighting again.”

Yes they are. And on a level playing field in Chicago. He acknowledges that neither fighter has a significant advantage going in.

Malignaggi said the fans got a glimpse of the old Paulie Malignaggi in the first Diaz fight, in which he moved as beautifully as ever and frustrated his forward-marching opponent for much of the tactical fight.

And that, he said, was only the start.

“We started to bring back what was lost with Buddy,” Malignaggi said. “We lost some speed. We basically worked on getting that back. Now we’re starting to improve again. We eliminated the negative; now it’s all positive. We’ve brought back the fighter of three years ago.

“It’s only been a couple of months but I feel like a different fighter already.”


Michael Rosenthal can be reached at RingTVeditor@yahoo.com