Danny Garcia To Meet Paul Malignaggi on Aug. 1

Danny Garcia was a rising star a couple years ago, was knocking heads off shoulders, was winning fights he wasn’t supposed to. His rise has stabilized and there is not so much chatter for him to meet Floyd Mayweather, as there was earlier in 2014. He must beat stubborn vet Paul Malignaggi, the pugilistic pride of Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, NY to reclaim the momentum track he was on.

The Philly fighter will tangle with the New Yorker, coming back after a tough stoppage loss, and uncertain how much, perhaps, he has left in his tank, on August 1.

The scrap, to unfold at Barclays Center, the busiest big space for boxing in the nation now, along with Stub Hub, will also screen on ESPN, on primetime.

This is the second ESPN boxing show in their new two year deal, a “time buy situation” with Al Haymon, and Premier Boxing Champions. Haymon pays ESPN, quite handsomely, rumored to be more than $1 million per show, for the right to showcase his talent on their platform.

Garcia has been fighting at catchweights of late, in between 140 and 147, and drew massive scorn on the net for not defending his 140 pound crown for a long spell, while holding onto the bauble. He’s released that WBC title and will see how he feels at 147. Greeting him will be Malignaggi, who was set to come back against Danny O’Connor May 23, but got a cut eye, and this opportunity appeared instead. It is preferable, as the stakes and the payday are mucho higher. Lots of folks think Malignaggi will get rubbed out, judging by Twitter response, but this is one stubborn dude, boxing is in his blood, and his pride will allow him to do much better than those naysayers predict, I’m guessing…

Here is the release PBC sent out to tout the tussle:

UNDEFEATED SUPERSTAR DANNY GARCIA TO FACE BROOKLYN’S OWN PAULIE MALIGNAGGI

AS PREMIER BOXING CHAMPIONS GOES PRIMETIME ON ESPN AT BARCLAYS CENTER ON SATURDAY, AUGUST 1

Tickets On SaleWednesday, June 17 at 10 a.m.

BROOKLYN (June 15, 2015) – Undefeated superstar Danny “Swift” Garcia (30-0, 17 KOs) will take on Brooklyn’s own Paulie “The Magic Man” Malignaggi (33-6, 7 KOs) at Barclays Center as Premier Boxing Champions will be live in primetime on ESPN on Saturday, August 1 with coverage beginning at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT.

“It’s going to be a great fight against Paulie on August 1^st,” said Garcia. “I’m looking forward to getting in the ring again, in my fifth appearance at Barclays Center, and putting on a great show for the East Coast fans in attendance and the fans watching all over the world. By the end of the night, I will still be the undefeated Danny ‘Swift’ Garcia. To all of the fans that love me, I love you too. This is for you.”

“Although I have a ton of respect for Danny and his father Angel, both for what they’ve accomplished in the ring as well as the bond they share as father/son, I, like them, am a competitor through and through and in this sport it’s all about testing yourself against the elite. So I look forward to defending my home turf of Brooklyn and matching my skills against Danny’s at Barclays Center on August 1.”

“August 1 will mark Danny Garcia’s first fight as a true welterweight,” said Lou DiBella, President of DiBella Entertainment. “It’ll take place at Barclays Center, in the backyard of Brooklyn’s Paulie Malignaggi. This high quality PBC matchup on ESPN is a must-win situation for both fighters.”

“We are excited to host a third outstanding Premier Boxing Champions event and our first ESPN fight in Brooklyn,” said Barclays Center CEO Brett Yormark. “Danny Garcia always puts on a great show and there’s no bigger fan favorite in Brooklyn than Paulie Malignaggi. With this fight, we are continuing to establish Barclays Center as the premier boxing venue in the country.”

“This classic Philly versus New York match-up featuring two of boxing’s biggest stars is exactly why ESPN is televising Premier Boxing Champions,” said Brian Kweder, senior director of programming and acquisitions at ESPN. “Danny Garcia has laid waste to the junior welterweight division and instead of easing his way into the welterweight division, he’s fighting a former world champion in Paulie Malignaggi.”

Tickets for the live event, which is promoted by DiBella Entertainment, are priced at $250, $150, $75 and $45, not including applicable service charges and taxes, and are on sale Wednesday, June 17 at 10 a.m. Tickets are available at www.barclayscenter.com, www.ticketmaster.com and at the American Express Box Office at Barclays Center beginning Thursday, June 18 at noon. To charge by phone, call Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. For group tickets, please call 800-GROUP-BK.

In addition to the evening’s main event and co-main event, which will be announced shortly, select undercard bouts will be carried live on ESPN3. ESPN Deportes will also televise the fight live as part of its Noche de Combates series and ESPN International will present live coverage across its networks in Latin America, Brazil, the Caribbean and Pacific Rim. Live coverage will also be available through WatchESPN on computers, smartphones, tablets, Amazon Fire TV and Fire TV Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Roku, Xbox 360 and Xbox One via an affiliated video provider.

Now in his fourth year as a world champion, Philadelphia’s Garcia will return to headline at Barclays Center for a record fifth time. Garcia last fought in Brooklyn on April 11 defeating Lamont Peterson in a rousing 12 round majority decision. The 27-year-old has taken down some of the biggest names in boxing on his way to an undefeated record, including Amir Khan, Erik Morales, Lucas Matthysse and Zab Judah.

A former world champion at 140 and 147-pounds, the 34-year-old Malignaggi will return to the ring to fight at Barclays Center for the fourth time as a professional. He has faced a slew of big names throughout his career and has taken home victories over the likes of Zab Judah, Vyacheslav Senchenko and Pablo Cesar Cano. Born and raised in the Bensonhurst neighborhood of Brooklyn, “The Magic Man” will step into the ring for the first time since April 2014.

The first live Premier Boxing Champions on Primetime ESPN (PBC on ESPN) telecast, from the USF Sun Dome in Tampa, Fla., will feature a star-studded 12-round welterweight matchup between undefeated Keith “One Time” Thurman (25-0, 21 KOs) and Luis Collazo (36-6, 19 KOs) when the series debuts on ESPN on Saturday, July 11, at 9 p.m. The opening fight will showcase a 10-round junior middleweight matchup between undefeated Tony Harrison (21-0, 18 KOs) and Willie Nelson (23-2-1, 13 KOs). Read more.

For more information visit www.premierboxingchampions.com, www.barclayscenter.com and www.dbe1.com. Follow on Twitter @PremierBoxing, @DannySwift, @PaulMalignaggi, @LouDiBella, @ESPNBoxing, @BarclaysCenter and @Swanson_Comm and become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/PremierBoxingChampions, www.facebook.com/fanpagedannyswiftgarcia, www.facebook.com/PaulMalignaggi, www.facebook.com/barclayscenterand www.facebook.com/ESPN. Follow the conversation using #PBConESPN and #BrooklynBoxing.

Follow @Woodsy1069

WATCH RELATED VIDEOS ON BOXINGCHANNEL.TV