Conor McGregor lost Paulie Malignaggi as a sparring partner in a spat similar to ones that marred the Floyd Mayweather vs. McGregor tour promoting the Aug. 26 fight in Las Vegas.
Malignaggi said the event had become a fiasco. “It’s a circus,” he said.
Meanwhile, ticket sales for the Vegas bout reportedly have dropped off because of high prices.
A retired former world champion at his weight, Malignaggi had been hired twice as a sparring partner for McGregor to help get him ready for boxing champion Mayweather but, according to ESPN, Malignaggi won’t continue working with the cage fighter turned boxer.
This comes after photos emerged depicting McGregor in a dominant pose during a sparring session that took place earlier this week, which Malignaggi described as “violent.”
Tensions were reportedly high during the match, with Malignaggi annoyed that McGregor had invited a small crowd to watch the session.
Then McGregor’s personal photographer snapped an image of McGregor landing an uppercut, and posted it online.
Malignaggi challenged McGregor on Twitter to release video footage of the session on social media for everyone to see.
Malignaggi later told ESPN “I wanted to be part of this event, but I didn't want to become the story, and that's what this has turned into. I won't release any information about his game plan or what he's working on; I wouldn't do that. But this has become a fiasco. It's a circus.”
The Independent said a drop off in ticket sales could be due to the exceptionally high prices, ranging from $3,500 to $10,000, with platinum seats selling for $14,995.
Another reason could be racist and misogynistic accusations against McGregor.
The Guardian described how the claims first emerged during the opening two legs of the four-date journey through North America and Europe to generate publicity for their clash.
At one stop McGregor told Mayweather “dance for me, boy.” At another, McGregor announced he was “half-black from the belly button down.” He allegedly referred to blacks as “dancing monkeys.”
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