Malignaggi pointed to the timing between Hitchins pulling out of the fight and the announcement of the Zuffa agreement, suggesting the decision may have been influenced by the risk tied to a loss.
“It comes off like Hitchins may have actually been able to fight Duarte and was told, ‘Look, this contract is already getting made. We’ve got to make something up and not fight Duarte.’ So, that’s what he did instead,” Malignaggi said on ProBox TV.
Malignaggi said the situation appears tied to the deal being close to completion before it was publicly announced.
“That’s what it seems to be looking like to me if I had to guess. I think it’s more so not that he ducked Duarte. This deal was already on the table. It was already about to be signed or may have been signed, and it wasn’t announced,” he said.
Malignaggi said that the risk of losing to Duarte could have affected the agreement.
“He said, ‘Listen, it’s contingent on you not losing to the Duarte fight. You cannot take a risk in the Duarte fight and so go another way.’ Is it a duck? In some ways, yeah,” Malignaggi said.
Many fans have questioned the timing of Hitchins pulling out on the day of the fight, particularly given the matchup.
Duarte is a pressure fighter with a similar style to Gustavo Lemos, who gave Hitchins problems in their previous fight. That style matchup had been viewed as a difficult test heading into the bout.
Hitchins has not publicly linked his withdrawal to the Zuffa deal. No official explanation beyond the initial withdrawal has been confirmed.
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