Conor McGregor’s former sparring partner thinks Jake Paul would knock UFC star out in boxing
Paulie Malignaggi thinks Jake Paul would knockout Conor McGregor if the pair ever met between the ropes.
Paul is scheduled to face his fourth MMA fighter in boxing since debuting in 2020. The Youtuber-turned boxer will face UFC veteran Nate Diaz on August 5 in Dallas, Texas, but has been vocal in expressing his desire to fight McGregor.
As much as Paul has attempted to poke the bear with the Irish superstar, he’s failed to get a serious bite back. However, McGregor labelled Paul a “donkey” in a recent interview with Matchroom Boxing. That’s about as much as McGregor has entertained for now.
Despite a fight between the pair being far-fetched at the moment, former WBA welterweight champion and former sparring partner of the “The Notorious”, Malignaggi is of the belief that Paul would humble McGregor in the boxing ring.
Paulie Malignaggi backs Jake Paul to knockout UFC star Conor McGregor
“I think Jake Paul would knock Conor out”. Malignaggi said, talking to Betway.
“Conor has no balls. If you take Conor a few rounds he already has this very big discomfort and mistakes naturally create themselves. You don’t even have to create them anymore.”
Earlier this year, Paul was dealt with his first career loss since his ascendance in boxing, which came to Tommy Fury. Prior to that, the 26-year-old found incredible success against MMA fighters, defeating the likes of Ben Askren, Tyron Woodley, and Anderson Silva.
Although Paul is relatively new to the game, Maglinaggi still believes he has enough experience to overcome the Irishman, who he claims has no heart when times get tough.
Malignaggi question’s McGregor’s heart
“Conor’s a frontrunner, a guy who’s good early on. But as a fight wears on he breaks down. He doesn’t have the character to withstand a long fight. Typically frontrunners have no heart”
“So I think Jake would have a disadvantage early because I think Conor’s sharper with his one-two but I think as the fight wears on Jake would be pressuring him and using his natural weight and size over him, I think he would eventually fall apart, make the mistakes, and those defensive lapses would would hurt him.
“I think he would do okay for a couple of rounds, but if you didn’t get Jake out in a couple of rounds, I think Jake would knock him out, and he would probably knock on out with a big shot.
“Jake’s pretty strong, and Jake’s boxing is, you know it’s not terrible. It’s decent, so I think it would come into play.”
Quotes via Daily Mail
While a boxing fight is not in McGregor’s sight yet, who knows what the future will hold? Instead, the former two-weight division champion is preparing for his UFC comeback after a period on the sidelines due to injury. The 34-year-old is expected to face Michael Chandler towards the end of the year, with the official date to be revealed upon the launch of the new season of The Ultimate Fighter.
Do you agree with Paulie Malignaggi’s take on Conor McGregor vs. Jake Paul? Let us know in the comments!
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