Paulie Malignaggi (L), Conor McGregor (R). © Reuters / AFP Source
I'm predicting at some point we'll see a Conor McGregor vs Paulie Malignaggi boxing match. Knowing that Conor is a great marketer I still don't know if the Paulie Malignaggi feud was a deliberate setup in preparation for a fight. But essentially the way the fight went down with Mayweather, sets up perfectly for a boxing match between Conor and Paulie. Conor lost as expected, but was surprisingly competitive against one of the best ever. He certainly didn't make a fool of himself. I think many believe that a fight between Conor and Paulie would be competitive.
What I don't know is if the feud between Conor and Paulie is real or a setup. Either way, I think there is a lot of money to be made marketing a boxing match between the two. Clearly the purse would not be as much as last nights fight, but probably more than Conor typically makes for an MMA fight. Either way, if the bad blood is real then the fight will happen, and if it was a setup then this fight happens.
Note: I did not watch the fight last night. From what I've read Conor was surprisingly competitive.
Thoughts?