Freddie Roach to sue Paulie Malignaggi

[Faulks]

Freddie Roach and Amir Khan are to launch legal action after Paulie Malignaggi added to the insinuations of drug use against Roach’s fighters, initiated by Floyd Mayweather Jnr’s demand that Manny Pacquiao submit to rigorous blood-testing ahead of any fight between the pair.

 

Khan was dragged in to the controversy when Malignaggi, the British fighter’s opponent this weekend when Khan defends his world light welterweight title, suggested training alongside Pacquiao cast doubt over the methods used by Khan to prepare for the fight.

 

“Amir and Manny work with me and my trainers. I know what goes on in my gym and I’ve had enough of this rubbish,” said an angry Roach. “That’s why we’ve issued a libel suit.

 

“Paulie brought it up that Amir might be on something because he trains with us. My guys are clean. It’s an insult because the success of my fighters is down to hard work.”

 

Khan makes his Madison Square Garden debut on Saturday night in what promises to be a hostile environment when the former Olympic silver medallist takes on the native New Yorker.

 

“Malignaggi kept asking pointedly why my body has changed since I’ve been over here,” said Khan.

 

“These people do not realise the work Manny and me put into it. They disrespect the phenomenal training it takes to do the job I do.”

 

Khan says his physical improvement, far from being chemically assisted, is the result of hard graft under Roach’s supervision at the trainer’s Wild Card gym in Los Angeles.

 

“I get up at 5am to go running but that’s only the start,” said Khan. “I take in five to six thousand calories of the right stuff a day. It takes hours and hours of training every day to work that off, so that even between fights I never walk around more than seven pounds over the 10st light-welterweight limit.

 

“Drugs? These people don’t get it. It’s not even about muscle. I’ve got less of that now than when I turned pro. I’m so fit that I’m punching harder than ever.

 

“The benefits come in the fights. I know I’m ready for more than 12 rounds. The fights are easier than the training.

 

"I’ve always had the heart to dig deep when necessary but now I use my head as well. In my four fights with Freddie so far, I’ve come on a ton both physically and mentally.”

[url]http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/boxingandmma/7723434/Freddie-Roach-to-sue-over-Paulie-Malignaggi-drug-slur-on-Amir-Khan-and-Manny-Pacquiao.html[/url]

[WelshDevilRob]

About time Roach was proactive. People can't keep coming out with these unfounded allegations unless they are prepared to goto court.

 

May teach Malignaggi an important lesson about keeping his mouth shut. He'll get paid for this fight then lose it all in court, so effectively be fighting for free on Saturday.

[TheBigTodd]

Completely agree with this, he needs to stand up for his camp.

[Wheelchair]

These drug stories are getting bloody tiresome now.

[Faulks]

Ive often wound friends up about the Pac PED situation but unless we get some comprehensive proof then he aint on them..

 

Hope Freddie follows through with this or will it just die out? Whats happened with the legal case and the Floyd camp?

[grapevine241]

libel suits are tricky to win

[Wheelchair]

Amir Khan hits back at Paulie Malignaggi after doping accusations

 

Amir Khan's world title defence at Madison Square Garden tomorrow night has been lent a further edge as the British boxer reacted angrily to the challenger Paulie Malignaggi's accusations of doping in Freddie Roach's camp.

 

Khan, 23, will make his US debut when he puts his WBA light-welterweight title on the line. Although he and Malignaggi have exchanged barbed comments throughout the build-up to this fight, Khan felt the American had crossed a line by questioning his Wild Card Gym stablemate Manny Pacquiao's reluctance to agree to blood-testing ahead of any potential fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr.

 

"He was saying I was on drugs as well and how big I had gone, but working with Alex Ariza [Roach's fitness and nutrition expert] and looking at how my body has changed, to be honest I've gone a lot slimmer," Khan said. "I was a big, big lightweight and I've trimmed down and made my legs bigger.

 

"What people like Paulie Malignaggi don't realise is the work ethic and the training that me and Manny put into our work. We work so hard and it just disrespects the trainers because they help us so much, push us 110% and do a wonderful job with us."

 

Khan believes the hard work he has put in under both Roach and Ariza has transformed his career after he left his home town of Bolton to train at the Wild Card in Los Angeles following the only defeat of his professional career, a one-punch, first-round knockout by Breidis Prescott in 2008.

 

"Since I've been in the Wild Card Gym with Freddie and Alex I think I've come on so much both mentally and physically," he said. "(I have been) using my brain, using my skills instead of just jumping in using my heart.

 

"The heart is there when I need to dig deep but instead of just going in there not using my brain – I used to get caught with stupid shots – now I'm picking the right shots at the right time and it's made a massive difference in my style. When we put it all together and we spar I see the differences from before.

 

"I had the skills, I just needed someone to bring it out of me and to give me the confidence; to say 'Look, use your brain instead of using your speed, your power. Rely on your boxing skills', and that's what I've done. Now I have my boxing skills and my speed and power."

 

Khan said he sought out Roach as a trainer "who's going to take me to the next level and bring the best out of me". He added: "I watch those old fights and I'm thinking 'If I was fighting myself...'

 

"My left hand was very low and I could get caught with a right hand and then I used to jump in with my body first and leave my back leg behind so my stance was wide and I used to be square on a lot of times and just look for that one big shot. But that's experience, I've learned from that and it's made me a better fighter."

 

He praised Ariza and Roach for putting him straight on the importance of making weight in a proper manner.

 

"I used to eat what I want, on a junk diet and used to think I could make my weight easy and kill myself over the last four or five days," said Khan. "But now I do it professionally. I work my way down and Freddie is always on my case or Alex's case, 'What's Amir's weight now?' They work together and I make the weight easily and I feel so much stronger."

 

Khan promised to beat Malignaggi in style and join Ricky Hatton as the only fighters to have stopped the 29-year-old American.

 

"If you look at his last few fights, even the guys that have beaten him, I don't think anyone has beaten him in the style which I'm going to beat him. I want to do a good job on him.

 

"We've got a gameplan to take into the fight, we'll stick to it and see how he copes with that gameplan. I'll listen to instructions from Freddie and it's a gameplan to stop him and if it's early, it's early but I know for a fact it won't go the full distance.

 

"I'm definitely going to win but not only win, win in a good style."

 

 

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2010/may/14/amir-khan-paulie-malignaggi?

[gavpowell]

These drug stories are getting bloody tiresome now.

 

Pop down the Wildcard, they've probably got something that'll sort you out with that mlol/

[donlevy]

Suing Malignaggi wil just encourage him to continue his career.Just let Malignaggi get his arse handed to him and let him pick up his cheque and wave him off as he rejoins his jersey shore peeps back home.

[Faulks]

Cant see it coming through myself, as with the floyd family its so hard to prove..

[grapevine241]

alex ariza is definitely shady, i will say that.