Danny Garcia to fight Paulie Malignaggi on August 1

Light welterweight world champion Danny Garcia (30-0, 17 KOs) will fight two-division world champion Paulie Malignaggi (33-6, 7 KOs) on August 1 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

Garcia, 27, who is coming off beating Lamont Peterson on points in a nontitle bout in April, is moving up in weight to welterweight after being troubled by making the 140-pound light welterweight limit and fighting his last two fights at catchweight contests of 142 and 143lbs. The unbeaten American recently vacated his WBC belt and is expected to do the same with his WBA title, as he is unlikely to fight in the weight class again.

Malignaggi, 34, who has won world titles at light welterweight and welterweight, has not fought since being knocked out in the fourth round by then IBF welterweight champion Shawn Porter in April 2014, so he is in a situation where he cannot afford to lose. A loss for the Brooklyn native in this fight will likely spell the end of his 14 year pro career. Malignaggi was supposed to make his return from the long layoff against Danny O'Connor on May 29 but suffered a cut in training and pulled out of the bout.

Garcia said: "It's going to be a great fight on August 1. I am looking forward to getting into the ring again, in my fifth appearance at Barclays Center, and putting on a great show for the east coast fans in attendance and fight fans 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."

Malignaggi said: "Although I have a ton of respect for Danny and his father Angel, both for what they have 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 the Barclays Center."