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      Paulie Malignaggi ‘axed by Showtime over outspoken views on race in boxing and refusing to apologise’

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      PAULIE MALIGNAGGI has been axed from his role at Showtime after refusing to apologise for his controversial views regarding race in boxing.
      The retired former champ, who held titles in two weight divisions, caused anger in response to a comment made by American fighter Devin Haney.

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      Paulie Malignaggi has been axed from Showtime, according to reportsCredit: Getty Images – Getty
      Haney, 21, said in April that “he’d never let a white boy beat me.”
      Malignaggi, who was employed as an analyst for Showtime at the time, responded to iFLTV: “When you’re in your early twenties, you probably don’t express that very well.
      “It’s not something that great to make racial (statements) in 2020, especially with so many racial tensions in the world.
      “Boxing has had its course in history with certain demographics dominating more than others, right?

      “Maybe like 100 years ago, Irish fighters were better. And then the Jews and the Italians came in.
      “I think the African-American fighter became most dominant in the sport in the 70s, 80s, and even 90s.
      “It’s not great to have the race discussion because it’s going to coordinate division.
      “It’s no longer the time of the African American anymore in boxing.

      “It’s (the Eastern Europeans) that has become the dominant species in boxing. I think stating something like (Haney’s statement) could be very dangerous.”

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      Boxing Scene write how bosses at Showtime had asked Malignaggi to apologise for his comments but felt his comments weren’t worthy of an apology.
      And according to Idec, the company are now working on a severance agreement.
      Malignaggi had been employed by the company since 2012 and hasn’t responded to a request for comment from Boxing Scene.

      McGregor vs Malignaggi: Watch footage from infamous sparring sessions More

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      Mike Tyson, 54, would still KO Deontay Wilder, 34, in ONE MINUTE if pair fought now, says former trainer Jeff Fenech

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      MIKE TYSON would knock out fellow American Deontay Wilder inside a MINUTE if he trained for six weeks, according to his former trainer.
      The former heavyweight champ, 54, is considered one of the greatest boxers of all-time and enjoyed an illustrious career.

      Mike Tyson would still knock out Deontay Wilder today claims his ex-coach
      Iron Mike was crowned the youngest world champion ever, aged 20, and earned the nickname the ‘Baddest Man on the Planet’.
      His career spanned 20 years, knocking out 44 of his 50 opponents – and is now primed to return to the ring with a fight against Roy Jones Jr.
      Wilder, 34, held the WBC world title until he came crashing back down to earth by heavyweight rival Tyson Fury.
      He has knocked out a staggering 41 opponents in 44 fights and remains the hardest puncher in the business.

      But despite being 20 years older and retiring in 2005, Jeff Fenech believes Tyson would STILL beat Wilder today with some training.
      He told Sporting News: “Boxing’s not the same now. I’d guarantee that if Mike Tyson trained for six weeks, he’d knock Wilder out in a minute.
      “He would hit them. If these guys are getting knocked out by Tyson Fury – who’s a great fighter, but not a huge puncher – Tyson would kill these guys.
      “They’re not on the same level today.

      “Mike today, I reckon if he trained he could still beat these guys.
      “Fury’s got these other skills, but Deontay Wilder’s got a punch and nothing else. If you punch him, it’s over.
      “And Mike don’t miss.”
      And his thoughts are echoed of those by boxing coach Teddy Atlas who was Tyson’s first amateur coach while later cornering champions Michael Moorer, Shannon Briggs and Alexander Povetkin.
      He reckons Tyson’s rivals Lennox Lewis, Evander Holyfield and Riddick Bowe all would have beaten current heavyweight kings Fury and Joshua.

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      Mike Tyson would need just six weeks training to beat WilderCredit: Rex Features

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      Jeff Fenech reckons Tyson still has what it takes to beat WilderCredit: Reuters

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      COLIN HART
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      Atlas told SunSport: “The guys in the 90s were more talented. If you put Joshua against Tyson, Joshua against Lewis, Joshua against Bowe, I think you’d probably favour the guy in the 90s.
      “I don’t see Fury beating those guys either. And again, I give Fury all the credit in the world, he’s beaten everybody that’s in front of him.
      “I give him all the credit in the world but I do not think he would have had the same level of success against the guys in the 90s.”

      Deontay Wilder underwent secret bicep surgery after Tyson Fury loss as he reveals trilogy fight will take place in 2020 More

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      Mike Tyson vs Roy Jones Jr will NOT be a pat-a-cake exhibition… it is shameful that the bout has been sanctioned

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      MIKE TYSON’S eight-round exhibition with Roy Jones Jr has shamefully been officially sanctioned by the Californian State Athletic Commission.
      And if that’s not an example of boxing scandalously shooting itself in the foot I don’t know what is.

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      Mike Tyson will make a boxing comeback at the age of 54Credit: Getty Images – Getty

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      Roy Jones Jr, 51, has the ominous task of trading with Tyson
      Last week it was announced Tyson, 54, and Jones, 51, wearing 12oz gloves — but no headguards — are going to meet behind closed doors at the misnamed Dignity Health Park, Carson, a suburb of Los Angeles.
      America is a free country and if Tyson, who hasn’t been in the ring for 15 years wishes to stage a farcical comeback so be it.
      And if fans are willing to pay the outrageous sum of £39 to watch this unedifying spectacle that’s their prerogative.
      What I find totally abhorrent is that the California Commission, which has the reputation of being one of the strictest in the US when it comes to the health and safety of boxers, should give it their blessing.

      The British Boxing Board of Control would never entertain the idea of two men in their fifties, obviously going through a form of middle-aged madness, indulging in such blatant attention-seeking.
      BBBofC secretary Robert Smith was being diplomatic when he told me: “I must say I’m very surprised at the California Commission, held in such high regard by every governing body in the world, allowing this to happen.”
      If the California Commission had done the right and sensible thing and rejected Tyson and Jones, no doubt they would have found a rogue State to accommodate them.

      Just as Aaron ‘The Hawk’ Pryor did 30 years ago.

      Pryor, one of the 20th century’s greatest fighters, following detached retina surgery, was diagnosed as being legally blind in his left eye.
      Yet he still had the gall to apply to the California Commission to renew his licence to continue his career.
      Hardly surprisingly his application was thrown out.
      Desperate for money to feed his cocaine habit, Pryor — who held the world light-welterweight title for five years — went to Wisconsin to try his luck there.
      This is where the story belongs in the can’t-make-it-up section.
      Though it beggars belief, Pryor got his licence.

      They are just going to be there moving around the ring and letting the fans see legends
      Andy FosterExecutive director of the California Commission

      Maureen Cummings, secretary of the Wisconsin licensing authority explained: “The State considers Pryor’s problem a handicap rather than a medical condition.
      “And we have strict laws against discriminating against the handicapped.”
      Aaron, who eventually kicked his drug habit, knocked out a journeyman. He was 60 when he died of heart failure four years ago.
      Andy Foster, executive director of the California Commission, justified his organisation’s highly controversial decision to pander to Tyson and Jones.
      He said: “They won’t be trying to hurt each other. This isn’t a situation where they are going out there to try to take each other’s heads off.
      “They are just going to be there moving around the ring and letting the fans see legends.”
      Tyson’s ominous reaction to that statement was: “The gods of war have reawakened me and I want to go to war again. I just know one way of fighting.”

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      Foster and his colleagues are banking on Tyson and Jones being involved in a pat-a-cake, so-called exhibition bout so neither of them are liable to be seriously hurt.
      But once the bell sounds and the adrenaline starts pumping through Tyson’s veins, anything is likely to happen.
      As Smith drily remarked: “Some of the best fights I’ve seen were supposed to be exhibitions.”

      Mike Tyson smokes a huge joint as he signs the deal for comeback fight against Roy Jones Jr More

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      Anthony Joshua spars local lads in car park after training as smiling heavyweight champ winds down

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      ANTHONY JOSHUA was captured having a touch spar with local lads after finishing his own session.
      The WBA, IBF and WBO champion, 30, was filmed having a down to earth moment with some fans outside the Finchley Amateur Boxing club.

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      Anthony Joshua was captured having a touch spar with local lads after finishing his own session

      2

      Joshua was filmed having a down to earth moment with some fans outside the Finchley Amateur Boxing club

      AJ, who is preparing to face 39-year-old Bulgarian Kubrat Pulev, enjoys some shadow boxing with one supporter.
      He then held his hands up mimicking pads for another, who received a lesson on combination punching from the heavyweight.
      Joshua’s IBF mandatory defence against Pulev was initially set for June but later faced the axe amid the coronavirus pandemic.
      Promoter Eddie Hearn now hopes to reschedule the title fight for November, with a reduced crowd at the O2 Arena.

      AJ has not boxed at the O2 since 2016, instead headlining at Wembley and the Principality Stadium.
      He was on the road twice last year, first losing in a shock upset against Andy Ruiz Jr in New York last June before winning the rematch in Saudi Arabia six months later.
      Joshua looks set to fight just once this year, but has already agreed a double header with WBC champion Tyson Fury, 31, in 2021.

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      The pair bumped into each other in Marbella as they holidayed, and told one another to avoid defeat in their next bouts.

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      Wilder was dominated in February by the Brit, twice being floored before losing in the seventh round. More

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      Mike Tyson claims he would ‘kick Conor McGregor’s ass’ in boxing fight as legend appears on Jimmy Fallon’s Tonight Show

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      MIKE TYSON has claimed that he would ‘kick Conor McGregor’s ass’ in a boxing fight.
      The 54-year-old is coming out of retirement to lock horns with Roy Jones Jr on September 12 in an eight-round exhibition showdown.

      Iron Mike has shed six stone in anticipation for his return to the ring and promised to give everything once he climbs between the ropes.
      The “Baddest Man on the Planet” won 44 of his bouts by KO and was a two-time world heavyweight champion.
      And despite his last fight coming back in 2005, Tyson is confident he’d have the edge over several fighting icons.
      While appearing on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, the American claimed he’d destroy Rocky Balboa and Ivan Drago.

      When asked about UFC legend McGregor, Tyson responded: “Imma kick his ass anyway, we’ll play boxing rules.”

      McGregor, 32, lost his first, and only, professional boxing match back in 2017 to Floyd Mayweather.
      And speaking on his podcast, Tyson had actually praised the Irishman for his skills on his in-ring debut.
      He said: “He never really had a boxing match in his life, right. He went 10 rounds with the greatest fighter in the last 100 years of boxing.

      “He went 10 rounds, scored punches on the greatest boxer in the last 100 years.
      “Did he do something? Did he accomplish something? People should look who he had the fight against and look what he did when he fought against him.”
      McGregor responded on social media and wrote: “Thank you Mike and just know that for the inevitable rematch, with the knowledge I now hold of Floyd’s style, plus under the tutelage of my old school boxing coach, I will crack the puzzle, and I will beat Floyd. I promise my life on it.

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      “It’s great to see you back Iron Mike.”
      Mayweather hasn’t fought professionally since his 2017 bout against McGregor where he stopped the Notorious in the tenth round.
      Though the 43-year-old admitted recently that he would welcome another match-up against the two-weight UFC world champion.

      Thank you Mike, and just know that for the inevitable rematch, with the knowledge I now hold of Floyd’s style, plus under the tutelage of my old school boxing coach, I will crack the puzzle, and I will beat Floyd.I promise my life on it.It is great to see you back Iron Mike ❤️ https://t.co/NDrVnEaukm
      — Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) May 15, 2020

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      Anthony Joshua insists he’s ‘waiting’ for Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder as he looks to cement heavyweight legacy

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      ANTHONY JOSHUA is pleased Tyson Fury gatecrashed the heavyweight championship party — but now wants to hunt him down.
      The Gypsy King spent almost 1,000 days out of the ring after unifying the division by dethroning Wladimir Klitschko in 2015.

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      Anthony Joshua is ready and waiting for Tyson Fury and Deontay WilderCredit: Getty – Contributor

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      Fellow British heavyweight Fury is WBC heavyweight champCredit: Richard Pelham
      Fury’s thrilling return and February demolition of Deontay Wilder should strike fear into potential opponents — but Joshua has his fellow Brit top of his guest list.
      Watford’s WBA, IBF and WBO king told Apple Music: “I’m happy Fury won — it changed the whole dimension of the heavyweight division.
      “We’re fighting for legacy. I need Wilder. I need Fury. I’m ready for them. I’m waiting for them.”
      As well as enjoying the depth of quality in the division, AJ remembers being impressed with a different type of talent at the London 2012 Olympics, where he won gold.

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      Tyson Fury beat Deontay Wilder in FebruaryCredit: Getty Images – Getty
      The 30-year-old said: “A good memory for me was just all the different countries being in one place.
      “I wanted to throw a party with those Jamaican girls, Swedish girls, all those different countries! I was like ‘Wow, this is amazing’.
      “The annoying thing about being in the athletes’ village was that I boxed on the last day of the whole two weeks.
      “So I knew people who had won a gold medal on the third day and were then walking around loving life while I was still doing running and physio.”

      AJ could have had a very different view of the 2012 Games after he was arrested in the build-up with 8oz of cannabis, while dressed in a Team GB tracksuit.
      He said: “I was boxing for Team GB a year before the Olympics and at that stage I was on about £500 a month, so it could not keep me away from opportunities that came my way.
      “I was on a notorious estate in north-west London. I was a young boxer in my Team GB tracksuit. I was driving a Mercedes,  cruising through the estate and three undercover police stopped and said that my car smelt a bit.

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      “I told them my uncle was a Rasta, they smoke weed and I had just dropped him off at the station. I told them I hated it because I was just trying to focus on the Olympics.
      “They said they understood and told me to stay focused but then one of them picked my big bag and asked ‘What is this?’.
      “I got charged and I got community service. I also got banned from the Olympic team for a while. That was a tough time.”

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      Mike Tyson ‘didn’t want anything to do with boxing’ in 2003 when Roy Jones Jr tried to set up £33m heavyweight fight

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      ROY JONES JR revealed Mike Tyson “didn’t want anything to do with boxing” when he tried fight him in 2003.
      Jones, a former middleweight champion, made the unprecedented step up to heavyweight 17 years ago to win the WBA title against John Ruiz.

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      Roy Jones Jr won the heavyweight title in 2003Credit: EPA

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      Jones tired to set up a fight with Mike Tyson in 2003 Credit: Reuters
      Afterwards he insisted only facing Iron Mike would keep him in the blue ribbon division.
      But he claims Tyson’s lack of passion for boxing led to the super-fight collapsing.
      Jones told Luke Thomas: “I tried right then but he said he didn’t want anything to do with boxing.
      “Because he said he was through with boxing – I don’t want to fight a guy who’s not got boxing in his heart.

      “If I beat him back then, after he said he was through with boxing, I’m not beating the best Mike Tyson.”

      Jones would make the ill-fated decision to move back down to light-heavyweight, where he beat rival Antonio Tarver.
      Andre Ward, who had the same manager as the four-division champ, said Jones turned down £33m to face Tyson, believing he could come back to the heavyweight headliner after Tarver.
      But the American great would be knocked out in the rematch and then lose the trilogy, never looking the same legendary fighter after leaving heavyweight.

      Tyson fought just once in 2003, beating Clifford Etienne.

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      But he would lose twice consecutively before retiring 2005.
      In the years following Jones, 51, continued to box, only retiring in 2018 aged 49.
      But he and Tyson – who has not fought in 15 years – will come out of retirement to box in an eight-round exhibition on September 12.

      Listen to the terrifying power of Mike Tyson’s punches as leaked footage shows Iron Mike prepare for Roy Jones Jr fight More

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      Anthony Joshua spars local lads in car park after training session as smiling champ winds down

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      ANTHONY JOSHUA was captured having a touch spar with local lads after finishing his own session.
      The WBA, IBF and WBO champion, 30, was filmed having a down to earth moment with some fans outside the Finchley Amateur Boxing club.

      2

      Anthony Joshua was captured having a touch spar with local lads after finishing his own session

      2

      Joshua was filmed having a down to earth moment with some fans outside the Finchley Amateur Boxing club

      AJ, who is preparing to face 39-year-old Bulgarian Kubrat Pulev, enjoys some shadow boxing with one supporter.
      He then held his hands up mimicking pads for another, who received a lesson on combination punching from the heavyweight.
      Joshua’s IBF mandatory defence against Pulev was initially set for June but later faced the axe amid the coronavirus pandemic.
      Promoter Eddie Hearn now hopes to reschedule the title fight for November, with a reduced crowd at the O2 Arena.

      AJ has not boxed at the O2 since 2016, instead headlining at Wembley and the Principality Stadium.
      He was on the road twice last year, first losing in a shock upset against Andy Ruiz Jr in New York last June before winning the rematch in Saudi Arabia six months later.
      Joshua looks set to fight just once this year, but has already agreed a double header with WBC champion Tyson Fury, 31, in 2021.

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