Paulie Malignaggi Likely Won't Fight Senchenko After Golden Boy Loses Purse Bid

Paulie Malignaggi apparently won't be fighting WBA welterweight titlist Vyacheslav Senchenko after today's purse bid, which saw Senchenko's promoters win with a $1 million bid, according to Malignaggi via his Twitter page. Here's the rundown of Paulie's reaction:

"I am up! and in a very pissed off mood. I have bad news. I feel like I let my fans down. Senchenko and Ukraine have won the purse bid for 1 million dollars!!! I have so much to say but I have to hold it in. First time I won't be in full blast mode. I'll keep the world posted on what's happening, hopefully something can happen and I get back in the ring."

Malignaggi did tweet that the fight wouldn't be happening, but took those down.

The fight was announced as going to purse bid on January 17, and it turned out about the same way that Senchenko's last purse bid fight, to face Brad Solomon, turned out. Senchenko vs Solomon didn't happen either after Senchenko's team won with a big bid.

Malignaggi simply isn't going to Ukraine for what he probably would feel is low money, fighting on Senchenko's soil as a big underdog because of assumed hometown bias. If he negotiates any further, it's likely Senchenko's team will try to lowball him as much as they can, knowing that he won't travel for relative peanuts.

Senchenko (32-0, 21 KO) is one of boxing's least-regarded "champions," because he's been a hide-a-belt guy facing what may be generously called fringe contenders during his nearly three-year reign with the WBA belt.

The fight is almost certainly not going to happen after this, which was pretty much expected. Golden Boy wasn't likely to match the high bid, because there's no reason for them to spend a million dollars on this fight as nobody in the States knows who Senchenko is, and in the end, it's pretty much pointless to have even held the purse bid or appointed Malignaggi to the status of mandatory challenger.