Malignaggi out as McGregor's sparring partner after photo surfaces

Paulie Malignaggi, a former WBA welterweight champion, said he'll no longer be Conor McGregor's sparring partner after a photo showed him apparently losing in a sparring match against the UFC star.

Malignaggi was helping McGregor prepare for his first professional boxing match against Floyd Mayweather, which is scheduled for August 26.

"I wanted to be part of this event, but I didn't want to become the story, and that's what this has turned into," Malignaggi said to ESPN's Brett Okamoto. "I won't release any information about his game plan or what he's working on - I wouldn't do that. But this has become a fiasco. It's a circus.

"And I do want that sparring video released. The UFC's PI definitely has that video. I understand it can't come out now, but Conor, if you have any balls, release what really happened."

Malignaggi went on a Twitter spree, demanding that McGregor release the full video of their training session.

"It's not my place to dictate terms in a training camp that is not mine, but it's my place to decide if I want to be a part of it," Malignaggi said in a statement obtained by ESPN.