Conor McGregor v Paulie Malignaggi was 'one-way beating'
Conor McGregor handed Paulie Malignaggi a 'one-way beating' in their recent sparring session, UFC chief Dana White has claimed ahead of the Irishman's fight with Floyd Mayweather.
Former two-weight world champion Malignaggi sensationally walked out of McGregor's training camp after photos were released that suggested he had been knocked down by the UFC star.
White later released footage of the session that showed McGregor getting the better of the Brooklyn fighter and prompted people to question Malignaggi's claim that he had in fact been pushed to the canvas.
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Dana White released footage of Conor McGregor's recent sparring with Paulie Malignaggi
The Irish UFC star takes on Floyd 'Money' Mayweather in a money-spinning fight on August 26
The UFC chief was speaking to Sky Sports on Tuesday ahead of the Las Vegas showdown
The 'Magic Man' was angered by White's decision to publish videos of the spar, calling the UFC chief a 'b****a**' and accusing him of editing the footage. White hit back on Tuesday, however, accusing Malignaggi of 'lying' about his time in camp.
'What am I, Steven Spielberg? Come on. It's footage of the actual sparring,' he told Sky Sports.
'I was there for all 12 rounds and Paulie has said some crazy things, some bad things about me. I felt sorry for the guy, it was a one-way beating and a lot of people were saying Conor couldn't box, Paulie was obviously lying about everything that he said about the sparring match so I released it.'
The Irish UFC superstar (right) predicts that he will knock Mayweather out within four rounds
McGregor has been undergoing a gruelling training camp ahead of his first boxing match
Malignaggi has called on White to release footage of all 12 rounds he shared with McGregor in Las Vegas. The UFC chief said he would be happy to oblige the retired fighter but suggested Malignaggi was right to leave camp for the sake of his health.
'I have no problem releasing the full tape, the problem is that Conor doesn't want Mayweather to see everything that he is doing and everything that he is working on,' White said.
'It was very one-sided, it was an absolute beating. And guess what? I think it was the right thing for Paulie Malignaggi to definitely leave for his health's sake!'
Mayweather is also in camp but White believes that Conor is a hard fighter to prepare for
The clips of his spar with Malignaggi aside, McGregor has released very few footage of his training camp for the money-spinning showdown.
Given the UFC star will make his boxing debut on August 26, Mayweather has been left with very little of material of his opponent inside the ring. And White believes this lack of boxing experience will allow McGregor to surprise the former pound-for-pound king when they meet at the T-Mobile Arena.
'I think Conor is a hard guy to study. In boxing there is a jab, when you throw the jab there is a counter — the right hand, the hook — there are things that are orthodox and ways of boxing,' he said.
'Conor McGregor is going to come at him different to anyone he has ever faced before. It's not going to be a boxing match, it's going to be a fight and I think that plays in Conor's advantage.'