Malignaggi: I'm being set up to lose!

Malignaggi: I'm being set up to lose Posted Aug. 16, 2009 at 10:49pm By William Dettloff There are a couple schools of thought on what a fighter’s mindset should be going into a big fight. Some trainers like it when their guy is tense and on edge. They figure it makes him mean. Others like it when their guy is relaxed, laid back. You know those guys. Manny Pacquiao’s like that. Rocky Marciano was too. He used to sleep like a baby in his locker room before every fight. Late last week, I talked to Paulie Malignaggi, who faces Juan Diaz in an excellent junior welterweight matchup on Aug. 22 in Houston, Diaz’ hometown, on HBO. Below is a transcript of about the first 11 seconds of our conversation, excluding greetings and introductions. PM: I’ve given in on the weight, I’ve given in on the hometown, I’ve given in on not getting extra money for giving in on the weight and the hometown. I’ve given in on the size of the ring, I’ve given in on having a say on what kind of padding is on the ring. BD: Um ... PM: And now, we’re going to have a Texas referee and also at least one Texas judge. So I said all right, we’ll get two neutral judges. Now I find out that one of the neutral judges is Raul Caiz out of California, who’s a Mexican! So now I got two judges I have to worry about. BD: And you think … PM: And it’s a take-it-or-leave-it deal, so obviously I’m not pulling out of the fight, as you can see I’m fighting next Saturday night. But this is just the kind of thing that’s never going to get fixed in boxing and that’s why it’s become a joke in America and it’s because people are sick of seeing this sh--, they’re sick of seeing the winner before the fight actually happens!” BD: So then … PM: Basically, they put me in a position where I’m showing up for a loss unless I knock out Juan Diaz, and I’m sick of this sh--, man. I’m really sick of the sh-- that goes on in boxing. Nobody fixes it because the people in power are the commissions and the commissions are the most responsible for f---ing all this sh-- up. Two things are clear: Malignaggi talks fast. And his state of mind going into what is a pivotal fight for him is anything but calm and relaxed. Maybe that’s a good thing. Maybe it isn’t. Some of this is just who he is. Malignaggi is a high-strung, fast-talking Brooklyn kid who isn’t shy about sharing what’s on his mind. But it’s also the result of what he sees as corrupt forces stacking the cards against him. Malignaggi did say, maybe in a piece of pre-fight politicking of his own, that he has nothing against Laurence Cole, who will be the referee. And his rationale for not trusting Caiz might be a bit of a stretch. It’s based on Caiz’ scoring of the Zaheer Rahim-Erik Morales fight in 2005 in California, in which judges Dr. James Jen-Kin and Julie Lederman scored in Raheem‘s favor 116-112 and 118-110, respectively, while Caiz had it closer at 115-113. Most observers scored it a virtual shutout for Raheem. Still, this doesn’t necessarily support Malignaggi’s sense that Caiz will look for every reason he can to score in favor of the Mexican fighter. Anyone can have a bad day. It also doesn’t necessarily mean, as Malignaggi’s attorney, John Hornewer, suggests, that Caiz favors punchers over boxers, which would be a disaster for Malignaggi given his style. Still, you can’t blame Malignaggi for asking why the Texas commission is so insistent on using Caiz, a California judge. According to Hornewer, when Golden Boy Promotions, Diaz’ promoter, approached Malignaggi about the fight, he was assured of neutral judges. Hornewer, working on behalf of Malignaggi for DiBella Entertainment, presented a list of judges they would accept, which is standard procedure. Golden Boy took the list to the Texas Commission, who inserted Caiz. Both Hornewer and Richard Schaefer of Golden Boy Promotions objected, to no avail. Caiz, who has no official affiliation with Texas, remains. The Texas Commission has a reputation in the industry for doing things the way they want to do things and that’s it. Malignaggi says that‘s not the case here, that something more sinister is at work. A look at Caiz’ scorecard afterward will suggest whether Malignaggi’s fear was justified, but you can’t necessarily blame a commission for not wanting a particular fighter or his camp dictating who will judge a fight. Good or bad, it’s their call, and Texas isn’t the only commission that does things its own way. Maybe the cards are stacked against Malignaggi. Maybe they’re not. At this point he believes they are, and that might be good. Maybe it’ll bring out the best in him, and he‘ll need his best against Diaz -- especially in an 18-foot ring. Or, maybe Malignaggi is making excuses in advance for a loss that deep down he suspects is coming. It’s easier to give up when you think you can’t win. But that doesn’t really square with the kid who took all kinds of hell from Miguel Cotto a few years ago and never submitted. However it turns out, you can be sure of this: Paulie Malignaggi will not go quietly. http://www.ringtv.com/blog/994/malignaggi_im_being_set_up_to_lose/