---
title: "Paulie Malignaggi Says Fighter Who Failed Test ‘Started Punching Harder Than Anyone’"
canonical: "https://boxing-social.com/news/paulie-malignaggi-on-puncher-after-test/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "Tom Eaton"
section: "News"
published: "2023-09-03T11:25:44Z"
modified: "2023-09-03T11:25:44Z"
---

# Paulie Malignaggi Says Fighter Who Failed Test ‘Started Punching Harder Than Anyone’

Former two-division world champion, Paulie Malignaggi, has spoken out in light of the increased number of failed drugs tests in recent months, after a surge in adverse findings have caused multiple disruptions to the sport.

Last year, [Conor Benn famously tested positive for Clomiphene](https://www.skysports.com/boxing/news/12183/12731807/conor-benn-confirms-two-drug-test-failures-before-chris-eubank-jr-cancellation-my-innocence-will-be-proven)[ahead of his scheduled fight with Chris Eubank Jr](https://www.skysports.com/boxing/news/12183/12731807/conor-benn-confirms-two-drug-test-failures-before-chris-eubank-jr-cancellation-my-innocence-will-be-proven).

Since that result, Dillian Whyte, Robert Helenius and Alycia Baumgardner have also returned adverse test findings.

Helenius was drafted in as a last minute replacement to face Anthony Joshua after Whyte was pulled from the event for failing a test, only for the Finnish heavyweight to also report a positive finding – something which only came to light after the fight.

In an interview with [talkSPORT](https://youtu.be/YYoeOthBb3U?si=xGP728mGvyKXkc7s), Malignaggi campaigned for a ten-year ban on boxers who fail a test and highlighted the improvement of one fighter.

> “I’m okay with a ten-year ban if they fail! I think that would put everyone off of fighting \[with drugs in their system\], but you know that they are not going to enforce that if a superstar fails. Conor Benn may have been innocent, but how is it that when all of the money is behind you, all of a sudden he is innocent?
>
> Conor Benn started punching harder than anyone that you see in boxing a couple of years ago, before that he was not punching like that, you want to tell me you’re not \[using P.E.D’s\]? There is a problem there, I saw the knockout he had against Chris Algieri, who is a durable guy, he hit him like this \[flicks hand\] and he was out cold!
>
> That guy wasn’t punching like that before, I’m sorry to tell you. Does that mean that my opinion on that makes him dirty for sure? No. But then he failed a test, he pays all the money, and then all of a sudden he is clean? I’m tired of it.”

[Benn has always maintained his innocence and after having his UKAD suspension lifted](https://wp.boxing-social.com/news/conor-benn-ukad-verdict/) is now eyeing a ring return later this month.