Paulie Malignaggi: “I think Manny Pacquiao can win without a KO, but he’s gonna have to score some knockdowns”

Paulie ‘The Magic Man’ Malignaggi is back. The 34 year old former two division world champion announced that he will be returning to the ring May 29th against contender Dannny O’Connor. The return will mark the first time that Malignaggi has stepped back into the ring since his TKO4 defeat to Shawn Porter.

On this “On The Ropes” boxing radio interview with Paulie Malignaggi, I discuss with him his upcoming return to the ring and his reasons for coming back. Malignaggi also talks about the reason he chose to step out so long and what he hopes to accomplish. Additionally Malignaggi breaks down the upcoming Mayweather vs. Pacquiao bout, talks about who is more likely to score a knockout and his official prediction. Here is what Paulie Malignaggi had to say.

Jenna J: It was recently announced that you will be returning to the ring to face Danny O’Connor on May 29th. How do you feel about that match up and getting back into boxing?

Paulie Malignaggi: It’s exciting for me to get back in the ring. There’s always moments when you miss it more than others and for me over the past year I’ve had ups and downs as far as wanting to get back in or not and finally I made this decision to come back in and Danny was the opponent chosen.

Danny’s a kid that I respect, he’s a pretty good fighter. He had a really good amateur career and he’s been looking for his big break. I was always in the position where I was always going to say I was happy for Danny when he got his big break because he’s a kid who works hard and he deserves it. It just happens to come against me, so I can’t be too happy for him because I gotta go out there and do my job and try to beat him. Hopefully it’s a good fight, he’s a solid competitor and I look forward to being back in the ring on May 29th with him.

Jenna J: You said the decision to come back was hard, what was the hardest part of dealing with that knockout loss to Shawn Porter that took you this long to come back?

Paulie Malignaggi: At first I had to get over the physical damage of the fight — it took actually a few months to really get over the whole concussion symptoms. I got over it but it was still the decision of whether I really want to train that hard again for these kinds of fights, do I really want to be back in the gym consistently? Do I ever want to make weight again? At first I was just like, “Nah.” Then as time went by, I started to miss it more. I would be in the gym here and there and still feeling pretty good.

I had to make a decision — do I have the time to train for a fight? I work with three different networks right now currently, so it takes up a lot of my time. I’m out of town almost every weekend — sometimes longer. A lot of my training would have to be on the fly, on the road, away from my trainers, away from the guys that are taking care of me day in and day out. If I’m at a different place each week, I can’t bring my team with me everywhere I’m going, otherwise camp would be super expensive.

It’s a situation where I had to make that decision and see if I could really give it my all, despite all these side distractions. I said, “You know what? I’m going to give it a shot because I have the hunger to compete still.” We’ll see what happens in the fight. I feel in my training I’ve been good. I just have to be able to deal with the southpaws, I started some southpaw sparring this past week. We’re trying to make it happen.

I really feel confident I can pull this off. I’ve been feeling good in the gym when I’ve been training and we’ll see. I may win the fight and say, “You know what? I just don’t want to deal with this again.” The month of May will really tell me a lot.

I’m pretty good shape right now — if the fight was tomorrow, the only thing I have to worry about is the weight, I have to get my weight down. Conditioning wise, I can do ten rounds right now because I was helping Sadam Ali throughout his camp and I was sparring a lot with him. It’s a matter of getting my weight down and being able to stay on top of things and stay sharp over the course of the next month, despite all the travel.

I look forward to the challenge, I love challenges and I look forward to the challenge of not just Danny O’Connor but also of the challenge of trying to balance out the schedule and keep enjoying and loving what I do. To be able to get through this you have to love it because it gets pretty hectic.

Jenna J: You’re going to be in Las Vegas to cover Mayweather-Pacquiao. How do you feel now that it’s now that it’s fight week?

Paulie Malignaggi: Yeah it’s pretty surreal that the fight is finally here. I think this event will be one of the biggest, if not the biggest event I ever work. I know as of now it will definitely be the biggest, so we’ll see. I’m excited to be part of it.

Jenna J: How do you feel about both guys going into this fight? Who do you think has the edge?

Paulie Malignaggi: I think Floyd has the edge but that’s why they get in the ring, if it was up to opinions, there would be various and different results. I think Floyd has the edge in the fight, it’s just a matter of executing it in the fight and seeing if Manny has different wrinkles and maybe he can give Floyd some trouble. I personally don’t see it but at the same time, if the fight does end up happening like that and it does get exciting and Manny’s able to give Floyd trouble, then you’ll have one for the ages.

Jenna J: What do you think Manny Pacquiao has to do to make it a challenge and really threaten Floyd’s unbeaten record?

Paulie Malignaggi: I think he needs a quick start that’s effective, not just a quick start because a quick start that’s not effective will just play into Floyd’s hands, because he will just wear down Manny more if he’s not being effective and he’s wasting a lot of energy. I think he needs a fast start, an aggressive start but an effective start as well.

Manny needs to actually get in Floyd’s mind somehow with some kind of pace or some kind of punches landed. I think if he’s throwing a lot of shots and wasting a lot of energy but nothing’s really happening as far as effectiveness is concerned, it’s all a mirage. People will get excited about the fact that he’s going crazy but if he’s not effective, it’s just ultimately going to play into Floyd’s hands as the fight wears out.

I think the effectiveness of Pacquiao’s aggression is very important early on and not just the fact that he’s aggressive. If he’s able to be effective in some way, then you take Floyd out of the comfort zone and you got a fight on your hands. But if you’re not able to get Floyd out of the comfort zone, then it just becomes a typical Floyd Mayweather fight and you’re looking at a long night for Manny Pacquiao.

Jenna J: A lot of people feel Pacquiao needs to score a knockout to win the fight. Do you think he can win without a KO?

Paulie Malignaggi: Yeah I think he can win without a KO, but he’s gonna have to score some knockdowns and probably get in Floyd’s mind to the point where Floyd is not effective as the fight wears on and where there’s doubt in Floyd’s mind and because there’s doubt in Floyd’s mind, Manny’s able to take the rounds with his activity and punches landed. A points decision for Manny is not out of the question, obviously it’s a long shot — Manny winning in general is a long shot — but of course, it’s not out of the question.

Jenna J: A lot of people in the Mayweather camp are talking about a knockout. Do you think Floyd will go for it sees the opportunity to get the stoppage?

Paulie Malignaggi: Yeah I can see Manny getting stopped, but not with one shot. I can see Manny getting stopped, just getting beat up and the accumulation of the beating he might take could cause a late stoppage in the fight. Manny getting timed jumping in will probably happen but it won’t result in a knockout, Floyd doesn’t hit that hard to be able to give that one punch KO when Manny’s jumping in like that.

If Manny does jump in, it will be one of the prizes he will pay during the course of the fight. He’s gotta figure out ways to cut distance without jumping in, which means he has to be creative and that’s something I’ve had doubts about Manny doing. I’m sure with the brains of Freddie Roach in his corner, I’m sure they got some ideas, so it will be interesting how they come out and how effective the gameplan they have is.