In 2024, it was described by a group of researchers at the Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales as a new genus and species, Magerifelis peignei.

[1][2] The generic name Magerifelis is a combination of "Magerit", the original name for Madrid, and the Latin word felis meaning "cat".

The specific name peignei honors the French paleontologist Stéphane Peigné, a deceased colleague and friend of the describing authors.

They also recovered it in a small cladogram as outside of a clade containing several extant cat species, but more derived than some other known fossil species:[1] Proailurus lemanensis Leptofelis vallesiensis Styriofelis turnauensis Miopanthera lorteti Magerifelis peignei Lynx pardinus Felis margarita Caracal aurata Felis silvestris Pristifelis attica Felis lybica Based on its holotype, Magerifelis peignei was estimated to weigh about 7.61 kilograms (16.8 lb), though the researchers suggested that the robustness of the hemimandible indicated that the actual body weight was higher.

Though the researchers also stated that the robustness of the jaws indicate that M. peignei also preyed on larger animals than other similarly-sized felids would.