by David P. Greisman

Zab Judah and Paulie Malignaggi are competing for the same territory, both literally and figuratively

They are Brooklyn-born boxers who will be facing each other in their native borough on Dec. 7 at Barclays Center. And they are fighters coming off losses and vying to remain viable in the packed junior welterweight and welterweight divisions.

There was no tension between the two, however, during a media conference call held on Nov. 26. Rather, there was a tone of respectfulness — even though both men said there will be no friendship once the bell rings.

“This fight came about after the [Danny] Garcia fight, in my preparation of moving forward and doing what I do, they said ‘Paulie,’ and I was like, ‘Paulie? Nah, Paulie my homeboy,’ ” Judah said, recalling when this match was proposed to him. “They was like, ‘Hey, this is an opportunity you got to take for boxing.’ I was like ‘OK.’ … I have no animosity or anything like that. We go in there and we represent for our city.”

Malignaggi mentioned that he’d looked up to Judah when both were younger, seeing him as someone whose footsteps he sought to follow.

“It’s not personal as far as the competitive aspect is concerned,” Malignaggi said. “That’s the guy in front of me.”

Instead, they’ll find motivation from someplace different than dislike.

Said Judah: “My motivation comes from just the opportunity, still being here 18 years strong, to be competitive against young fighters like Paulie Malignaggi, Danny Garcia, and to still be campaigning at a high level of boxing, and to be crowned the king of ‘B-K,’ that’s a very big accomplishment.”

Added Malignaggi: “You need different things to drive you. The competition always is a driving force. The competitor in me, for sure, is driven by winning. Winning means everything to me. … It’s not hard to get up for a fight like this. You can still respect your opponent and still get up for a fight.

“Plus, come on man, we’re wearing eight-ounce gloves,” Malignaggi said. “Once somebody gets hit and the other guy gets hit, I’m sure we’ll both be jawing at each other.”

Pick up a copy of David’s new book, “Fighting Words: The Heart and Heartbreak of Boxing,” at http://bit.ly/fightingwordsamazon or on Amazon U.K. at http://amzn.to/11mYGZI. Send questions/comments via email at fightingwords1@gmail.com