Conor McGregor's Former Sparring Partner Willing to Train Fighter for Cash

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Chris van Heerden, the former sparring partner of Conor McGregor, said he would be willing to return and spar with the UFC star ahead of his bout against Floyd Mayweather this month—for a price. 

Van Heerden spoke with TMZ Sports on Friday and said he sympathized with former McGregor sparring partner Paulie Malignaggi but would return for a sparring match if paid.

"If he pays me, I'll go beat him up. The first time I helped him out of a good heart...I didn't ask him for anything. [I sparred] for free. And then they done me bad. If they want me back, they better pay me."

Van Heerden split with McGregor's camp last year after he leaked full video of a sparring session that had previously been made to look McGregor look favorable. 

Malignaggi, who had been sparring with McGregor ahead of his prizefight with Mayweather, quit Thursday amid a similar disagreement with the fighter's camp. A still depicting McGregor knocking down Malignaggi leaked earlier this week, which incensed the now-retired boxer.

"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 told 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 the supposed knockdown was actually a pushdown but said he and McGregor have a "mutual respect" inside the ring.

"There was a pushdown yesterday," Malignaggi said of the sparring session. "Conor on the inside, he can get a little rough. He shoved me down, you know, but no knockdowns. Obviously, 12 rounds, you're gonna see there's a mark on my face. Very, very hard work for both of us. I was starting to get in a groove in the middle rounds, starting to land some good shots. Conor really came on strong in the end. It was back and forth."