Widespread criticism hasn’t deterred Conor McGregor as he continues to attack retired UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov.
The former two-division UFC champion, still in recovery with a broken left leg suffered in a trilogy loss to Dustin Poirier, doubled down after Nurmagomedov called his most recent Twitter comments “evil.”
Quoting Mike Tyson, the co-host of the “Hotboxing” podcast on which Nurmagomedov appeared, McGregor wrote “I wanna eat his children!!!” in response to his rival’s comments (the tweet has since been deleted).
Whereas McGregor’s previous attack was directed at Nurmagomedov’s father, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, who died of COVID-19, the latest tweet on Thursday was directed at the ex-champ’s children.
“When’s the last time he’s even seen them actually? His wife ? Mother? How bout [sic] you go spend some time with your kids and family for a change and keep my name out of your mouth b4 [sic] you get trapped somewhere again you mightn’t be so lucky next time,” McGregor wrote.
Since his loss to Poirier and a post-fight rant that brought family into the crossfire at UFC 264, McGregor hasn’t toned down his rhetoric. But the response to his attack at Nurmagomedov’s father was unusually strong, with many fighters stepping in to defend Nurmagomedov.
McGregor expects to be in recovery for several months as he heals from his injury. He has vowed to finish things with Poirier, who is expected to vie next for the undisputed lightweight title now held by Charles Oliveira.
UFC President Dana White initially tipped toward an immediate fourth fight between McGregor and Poirier, but later backed away from the idea in favor of moving forward with the division.
Nurmagomedov retired after his 29th professional win in a meeting with Justin Gaethje at UFC 254. Asked on “Hotboxing” whether he planned to stay retired, “The Eagle” reiterated he is through competing professionally. That hasn’t kept McGregor from trying to compel his rival’s return.
Whether he’s getting through might be another matter.
“For me, I think he posted this tweet [about my father when he had] drunk too much or [had done] something,” Nurmagomedov said on Wednesday. “He always delete these tweets. When he become normal, [he looked at his phone] and said, ‘Oh, what I did.’ Then he delete. This is my opinion, what he does all the time.”