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HomeNewsExclusive interview with Paulie Malignaggi: Tommy Fury showed me his pedigree against Jake Paul

Exclusive interview with Paulie Malignaggi: Tommy Fury showed me his pedigree against Jake Paul

Exclusive interview with Paulie Malignaggi: Tommy Fury showed me his pedigree against Jake Paul
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Ben Mendelowitz
Ben Mendelowitz
 @ June 19th, 2023
  • Dana White is “full of bo*****s” for suggesting crossover match-up between Jon Jones and Tyson Fury

  • Deontay Wilder will not be interested in a “circus sideshow” against Francis Ngannou...Wilder would KO Ngannou

  • Tommy Fury has “one big advantage” over KSI

  • Canelo is ducking Benavidez

  • Anthony Joshua v Dillian Whyte will not happen

  • Devin Haney has signed with Top Rank

Dana White is “full of bo*****s” for suggesting crossover match-up between Jon Jones and Tyson Fury

“I don't believe Tyson Fury versus Jon Jones is a serious thing at all, Dana White is full of bollocks. Most of what he says is not true, most of what he says is a lie. Over the test of time you see he's lying about almost everything, but he's a good salesman and all good salesmen are good liars, and that falls into this category. I don't believe Tyson Fury versus Jon Jones is a serious thing at all. I don't think Dana can make the fight happen and I don't believe the fighters will fight. Absolutely not, but it's a talking point.”

Deontay Wilder will not be interested in a “circus sideshow” against Francis Ngannou. If it did happen “the hardest puncher who has ever stepped foot in the ring” Wilder would KO Ngannou.

“Just because the PFL say they would finance Wilder-Ngannou, doesn’t mean Wilder will go in that direction. I think it's an interesting fight, don't get me wrong, but I think Wilder would beat Ngannou easily. Obviously the boxer has the advantage, but Ngannou is an interesting character and has been way underpaid by the UFC and deserves to make way more money, so if the PFL can make this kind of deal a reality, it would be amazing.

“But the only problem you have is Wilder is used to making so much money in boxing. The money Wilder makes is astronomical, so I don't know if you'd be able to finance it by MMA standards. I don't think they'd be able to afford Wilder. And then if you can match what Wilder makes in boxing does not mean you're getting Wilder because he's not going to do a circus side show for the sake of his brand. He's still trying to secure world title fights in boxing and he's still in the top three world rated fighters.”

“You'd favour Wilder to KO Ngannou. Wilder has a great jab and sets up that right hand nicely. I think it would be more of a cash out fight for Ngannou. Here's the problem - Ngannou has this killer reputation - but Wilder might be the hardest puncher who has ever stepped foot in the ring. Ngannou has the aura of a destroyer but if Wilder puts him to sleep that dents that image.”

Tommy Fury has “one big advantage” over KSI if the reports suggesting that fight could happen next are true

“Tommy did a great job in the Jake Paul fight. I saw him when he fought Anthony Taylor and he looked horrible, I didn't think he could beat Jake Paul. But Tommy showed great footwork against Jake - legitimate boxing footwork - which Jake was missing. He fell a bit short. So I'd favour Tommy against KSI, it takes years to become natural with footwork. KSI has made himself a star in the YouTube world but against Jake Paul we saw Tommy glide around him and he'd do the same to KSI. I can't see KSI beating Tommy. I underrated Tommy but he showed against Jake he could control the distance with the jab. They are simple things but they give you a big advantage against a non-boxing person that's not as experienced as KSI. That's something you get with time and experience. Tommy showed me his pedigree.

“I think Nate Diaz was trying to call Jake's bluff. Maybe he thought Jake wasn't comfortable going ten rounds. But then Jake agrees and then Nate's thinking - do I actually want to do ten rounds? And then he's going back on what he says. I think it was intended to be a mind game, but I think he lost the mind game because he's now backtracked.”

Canelo is ducking Benavidez if he fights Charlo

“Canelo has the advantage over Charlo because he's two weight classes bigger. But I find it very, very interesting if Canelo goes with the PBC but does not fight David Benavidez who everybody has been clamouring for. If that's not an outright duck, I don't know what it is.

Canelo is ducking Benavidez if he fights Charlo next. There's no getting around that question. You are working with PBC already if it’s Charlo, so if it’s not Benavidez, that's a duck. What else can you call it?

“Charlo is an excellent junior middleweight, but that's two full weight classes below Canelo but skill wise Charlo is a tremendous fighter. You have the undisputed champion at junior middleweight versus the undisputed champion at super middleweight. I'm not sure a fight with those sorts of accolades has happened before. So there are selling points. Athleticism wise Charlo is a terrific fighter. Canelo is also terrific. But can a guy coming up two weight classes have a real chance of beating him, I'm not sure. That's a lot to handle for Charlo.”

I heard from good sources that Devin Haney signed with Top Rank

“I heard from good sources that Haney signed with Top Rank the week of the Lomachenko fight. I know they tried to make it like they didn't, so the decision looked less suspicious, but if Devin Haney fights any ESPN opponent next, you have your answer regarding whether he's already signed with Top Rank. Teofimo is an ESPN opponent and there's already slow grumblings of that fight, so I think it will be kind of obvious that I'm right about Haney signing with Top Rank.”

Casts doubt over Anthony Joshua v Dillian Whyte

I don't believe AJ will fight Dillian Whyte in the summer, I think he will wait for the Saudi money against Wilder in December. The way AJ has been fighting, his mentality is not the same any more. He was a run through you type of guy, a good boxer too, but a guy who mentally wanted to break you in half. He had that cold mean streak in him. I'm not going to say he's had it beat out of him, but maybe he's just softened up. He's a bit older, he's made a ton of money, and the way he was looking in the Franklin fight, it looked like he was ‘old manning’ him. Getting by on your skills but not taking chances because you might get hit with something you don't want to get hit with at this stage in your career. You'd rather make it as easy as possible and breeze through it. That way you maintain your reputation and move into a bigger fight. I don't think Dillian is the same fighter either. He's always been a handful and they have a built in rivalry. But I'm not really sure if AJ wants to fight Dillian with that Saudi money on the horizon.

Jake Paul is current favourite amongst the boxing betting apps to beat Nate Diaz in their fight on August 6th.

Author
Ben Mendelowitz
Ben is a keen sports fan - paying particularly close attention to Soccer, Basketball and Cricket. Born in London, he is a diehard supporter of Chelsea.