As the fight opened up I thought Paulie might be in Danny Garcia's head. I had never saw Danny wear a mask and then he refused to look at Paulie. When the fight got underway I noticed that Paulie had a little footwork going. His legs looked fresh. I figured that would give him the opportunities to go in and out working the jab as he moves. Garcia looked slow and appeared to be looking to drop the power right hand on him. Paulie never got the jab working. He maintained decent footwork, and he made Garcia miss a little, but Malignaggi could get anything off himself. So he ended up being a punching bag with good footwork.
The referee told Paulie before the round started that he wasn't going to allow him to take too much abuse. Paulie understood but found himself in trouble, and the ref had to stop the fight. The fight had been one sided and there was every reason in the world to stop it. Paulie hadn't been competitive since the third round and looked like he'd given up. He knew he wasn't going to win and he just wanted to survive and grab the moral victory. Garcia had no intention of letting him make it 12 rounds. Danny Garcia had won every round.
Paulie said after the fight that he thought that was probably his last fight. I hope for his sake that it was his final time in the ring. Everything Paulie ever was depended on his quickness. That is gone and there is nothing else about him that makes him a threat. I thought he had a chance against Garcia because of the style match up. All signs pointed to Paulie going down, however with it being his final go at it, I just expected a little more. It just wasn't there anymore and proved that he needs to retire.
Paulie is luckier than most. He's got a good job with Showtime, and he's knowledgeable and insightful. I think he adds to their broadcast. Most fighters don't have the chance to stay close to the game when they are finished. Paulie is lucky in that way. Some fighters still have something left at 34 years old, but others hit that wall sooner. The best thing a fighter can do is to know when to walk away. I hope Paulie and those around him shut it down. I truthfully thought he should have called it quits after Porter nearly killed him.
The Undefeated Danny Garcia
Danny Garcia won every round against Paulie Malignaggi. He dominated Paulie the way an elite fighter has to do. Both Adrien Broner and Shawn Porter went through Paulie Malignaggi, and that ended up with them facing each other. Paulie has been the stepping stone fighter, the gateway to bigger fights. Danny went down that road tonight. Paulie is a small welterweight fighter that had moved his way up from lightweight. He was not the big true welterweights that are out there. The guys that a fight like this leads to are natural welterweights. They don't come up to 147. They come down to 147.
Danny said after the fight that he felt good fighting at the heavier weight. I thought he looked slower and even though he was dominating Paulie it didn't always look good. Danny looked slow and missed bad as he tried to drop the hammer on Paulie. I couldn't help but think the top five welterweights would beat Garcia. He couldn't hit Paulie consistently and he picked his shots well before throwing. Danny didn't really have to worry about Paulie knocking him out, but he never walked him down like Porter did.
Danny Garcia looked like a middle of the pack fighter at 147. He really needs another fight against a tougher opponent than Paulie Malignaggi. I'd like to see Danny fight Adrien Broner. The fight makes all the sense in the world. Both men moved up from 140. Both men won fights over Paulie Malignaggi. Most importantly they both needed it. Broner is headed down and most boxing fans think he's a joke. Danny is a fighter on the way up, and based on the fight against Malignaggi he needs another fight to see where he's at.
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