Malignaggi says his team is pursuing McGregor bout

Don't tell Paulie Malignaggi to move on from his beef with Conor McGregor.

Months after McGregor drew his ire over some unflattering photos taken during a sparring session ahead of the Irishman's boxing match with Floyd Mayweather, the still-disgruntled former world champion pugilist claims he's put the wheels for a grudge match in motion - with the help of Mayweather's longtime adviser Al Haymon.

"I know Al Haymon’s talking with (UFC president) Dana White," Malignaggi told FightHype.com, according to Will Esco of Bad Left Hook. "I know they’re speaking so if they want the fight they’ll make it. You know, I don’t need to do all that because Al Haymon makes anything he wants happen, happen. You know? The only way this doesn’t happen - once I spoke to Team Haymon and they told me they were on board to make this fight I knew they only way it wouldn’t happen is if this guy doesn’t have absolutely any balls to make it."

Malignaggi has repeatedly stated he'd come out of retirement to settle his business with McGregor, and while he went as far as confronting the Irishman in person days prior to "The Money Fight," McGregor's take on the would-be bout has been lukewarm at best. But the way Malignaggi sees it, if it makes dollars - especially more than what McGregor would make to fight in the Octagon - it makes sense.

"But this fight would pay him more, this fight would get him more exposure, this fight is a bigger fight than anything else he has. There’s no more Mayweather fight, this fight is the biggest fight there is. So once they told me that I said 'alright, the only way this doesn’t happen is if this guy has no balls' - which wouldn’t surprise me because he has no balls - but what I’m saying is, the way they’re going to present it to him, it’s going to be presented in a way where he really shouldn’t turn it down."

Contrary to Malignaggi's claims, White has insisted McGregor will face interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson in a championship unification bout next, but the retired boxer is willing to bide his time if that's indeed the case.

"Even if it’s not the next fight, even if it’s an MMA fight in his next fight, there’s no way he should be walking away from this fight unless he has no balls."