By: Vikram Birring, ringside,
Doghouse Boxing

As he walked towards the ring, Paulie Malignaggi must have been in disbelief. Flags of England and Pakistan waved through the audience at the Theatre at Madison Square Garden and he was serenaded with a strong chorus of boos (mixed in with roaring applause from his own fans) in his own hometown, a few minutes away from his home in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn.

The champion, Amir Khan, walked in to the same reaction, but he was not surprised that many of his fans showed up in support. Countryman Ricky Hatton had Floyd Mayweather in a hostile British environment in their bout in 2008; at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.

To say English fans are passionate, is an understatement.

The bout began.