By Keith Idec

Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Paulie Malignaggi are both part of the Showtime Sports family, but Mayweather isn’t angry about Malignaggi helping Conor McGregor prepare for their fight.

Malignaggi, a Showtime boxing analyst and a retired two-division world champion, has been one of McGregor’s main sparring partners for his August 26 showdown with Mayweather at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The undefeated Mayweather made a point of telling Malignaggi that he isn’t bothered by his professional partnership with McGregor following the second stop on their press tour Wednesday night in Toronto.

Mayweather was complimenting Malignaggi’s work as a commentator and as a boxer before bringing up what some considered a touchy topic.

“I’m glad that he’s on Showtime and other networks promoting boxing because we need guys that know about the sport,” Mayweather told Malignaggi during a post-press conference interview with Showtime. “You do a marvelous job. You do a hell of a job. You know about the sport. You know about the sport and also you was a hell of a fighter. Congratulations, because when I first seen you fight, I knew from the gate that you was a hell of a boxer. And I wanted to say thank you for even going to help McGregor out.”

Showtime’s Brian Custer, the moderator of the interview, interjected to ask Mayweather (49-0, 26 KOs) if he is mad about Malignaggi assisting McGregor, a UFC superstar who’ll compete in his first professional boxing match next month.

“No. It’s business and I understand business,” Mayweather said. “You don’t have to explain nothing to me. It’s business. You’re here to do a job. And whatever I do, it’s a job that I do. If someone come and is boxing me and sparring me, I may not know that they getting ready for Paulie. I’m just doing my job. He’s just doing his job at the end of the day.”

McGregor made sure Tuesday to mention that he doesn’t appreciate Malignaggi’s criticism of his boxing ability, which Malignaggi mentioned during the interview with Mayweather.

“Paulie talks a lot of sh*t,” McGregor told a group of reporters following a press conference Tuesday at Staples Center in Los Angeles. “I don’t care. Whatever. He’s just talking. Look, he’s being brought in to spar and he’ll answer to what he’s been saying, and then we’ll go from there after that. But we’re gonna have a knock in the gym. Look, we’re gonna have a knock and he’s gonna have to answer to what he’s been saying.”

The Mayweather-McGregor press tour will continue Thursday night at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. The four-city, four-day promotional venture is scheduled to end Friday at Wembley Arena in London.

Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.