After loss to Amir Khan Paulie Malignaggi to Move to Welterweight
When referee Steve Smoger stopped Paulie Malignaggi’s fight against Amir Khan in the 11th round on May 15 at Madison Square Garden, many observers felt as though it was more than just the end of the fight - they thought that it was the end of a career for Malignaggi. The former world champion appeared to have lost the speed and lateral movement that made him a very successful fighter and one of the most frustrating people to go up against for opponents. With his notable lack of power, it looked like there was a strong chance that Malignaggi’s emphatic loss to Khan would be the swan song of his career.
However, it’s only taken two weeks after the fight for Malignaggi to start contemplating his next fight. His co-manager Josh Dubin told BoxingScene.com earlier this week that the boxing world “had not seen the last” of Malignaggi and that he is already exploring options for upcoming fights. More surprisingly, Dubin said that Malignaggi would likely be moving up to welterweight from super middleweight - a bold move considering the lack of power that Malignaggi has shown in garnering just five knockouts in 32 career fights.
However, Dubin said that he believes that Malignaggi will have enough power to move up in weight class. He pointed to Khan’s face after the fight as proof that Malignaggi has more power than his record indicates. It’s certainly true that Khan had several welts on his face (particularly his eye) despite easily winning the fight. And it’s definitely true that Malignaggi has been able to win fights against top level opponents while being at a distinct size disadvantage. His problem against Khan is that he wasn’t able to counter his opponent’s power by being faster or more elusive. He presented an easy target for Khan and frequently couldn’t pull the trigger for a counter punch or lead shot.
Dubin believes that the step-up in weight classes is just what Malignaggi needs at this stage of his career. According to Dubin, Malignaggi had been cutting “at least 20 to 25 pounds” before his past few fights, including the bout with Khan. Being able to drop seven fewer pounds will make a huge difference in Malignaggi’s speed and agility, according to Dubin, as he won’t be fatigued from having to drop weight fast and be able to maintain more muscle mass. Dubin also believes that the increased muscle mass will improve Malignaggi’s power and allow him to be a factor at welterweight.
Malignaggi would very much like to face Ricky Hatton in his next fight for a chance to avenge his 11th round TKO defeat in November 2008. However, Hatton is now in semi-retirement after his loss to Manny Pacquiao in May 2009 and has shown little interest in making a comeback. The best alternative for Malignaggi to extract a level of revenge might be to take on Ricky Hatton’s brother Matthew, who currently holds the European welterweight title.
It is worth noting that Malignaggi has fought as a welterweight in the past, although this was primarily earlier in his career. However, two of his five knockouts (and the only two to come after his first three professional fights) came while fighting as a welterweight, lending some credence to Dubin’s belief that moving up in weight classes will increase Malignaggi’s power. His last fight as a welterweight was against Christopher Fernandez last April at the Foxwoods Resort in Connecticut, when he won an eight-round unanimous decision.
Dubin says that Malignaggi is only 29, and that he would not recommend that he continue fighting if he thought that he was in danger of being hurt. While the drastic weight cutting that Malignaggi was doing to make weight in recent fights certainly could have contributed to his lack of speed and movement, there were other signals in the Khan fight that a career spent fighting tough, bruising battles had taken their toll. Malignaggi might deserve one shot to resurrect his career as a welterweight, it appears that he’s facing an uphill battle to become a title contender again.
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