PAULIE MALIGNAGGI will return not to the squared ring but the triangle equivalent in the world of Bare Knuckle Boxing (BKB).
The 44-year-old, whose last fight wearing a pair of boxing gloves came in 2017 against Sam Eggington, takes on former English super-lightweight champion Tyler Goodjohn who has become a star of the BKB circuit.
“Magic Man” Malignaggi v “Tornado” Goodjohn headlines BKB 47 at the First Direct Arena in Leeds on October 18 and marks the Italian-American’s first fight in BKB since his sole effort and defeat against Artem Lobov six years ago.
The former IBF super-lightweight champion and WBA welterweight champion is now a regular analyst over at Boxing Scene. Malignaggi is best remembered for a career that saw him face household names like Miguel Cotto, Ricky Hatton and Amir Khan. However, the lure of coming back to a combat sport, particularly BKB, appears to have been too good to turn down.
“I’ve been out for a while. Tyler is a former world champion. At one time, Tyler was the premier name in the bare knuckle sport. His name resonates, grips, and sells in this sport. This is going to be one hell of a fight,” he said in a press release.
Unlike Malignaggi the career of Goodjohn in BKB has been something of a success with five wins in eight fights including his 2019 BKB featherweight world title triumph against Sean George. The 34-year-old ended a two-year absence from the sport with a points win over Joe Smith in April and can’t wait to square off against Malignaggi.
“This fight is massive,” Goodjohn said. “Paulie is a very good boxer – you can’t take that away from him. He has a very good jab. In bareknuckle you can win the fight on the jab – you can split someone’s face on the jab. To be able to take that jab away from him is what wins me this fight. I want to cement my legacy and that means fighting big names like Paulie.”
