Kamaru Usman responds to ‘disrespectful’ Conor McGregor: ‘Put down that bottle of whiskey’

Kamaru Usman clapped back Conor McGregor after your recent comments about him.

McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC) attacked just about everyone in the fan Q&A, and former UFC welterweight champion Usman was also targeted.

“Usman is talking crazy right now,” McGregor said in a live stream with Duel Bits (h/t Championship Rounds in X). “Where is Usman now? Malteser’s bald head – what happened again in his last fight? I can’t even remember where you are in the game, bro, right? You are nothing to me.

Usman (20-4 MMA, 15-3 UFC) is confused by McGregor going after him too.

“At what point does it become more than money?” Usman said in his “Pound 4 pounds” podcast with Henry Cejudo. “At what point does this become the integrity of the sport? Listen, at the end of the day, Conor is who Conor is. Conor has done fantastic things in this sport of mixed martial arts, for the UFC. He has. But Conor, me too. You were a champion – me too. So ultimately where I have a little problem is you say, ‘He’s a bum,’ or he is that. You can’t say that, Conor.

“I didn’t kick him while he was down. He has had run-ins with the law. He had back-to-back incidents and situations, but you never heard me sit there and kick the man while he was down. There needs to be some level of respect here because at the end of the day, that’s what this sport is about. The respect and discipline we all put in to reach the top of the sport. That seems to be something he’s missing.”

McGregor also had words for UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards, title challenger Belal Muhammad and UFC featherweight champion Ilia Topuria.

Usman reminds former champion McGregor that he was offered a fight with him several times in the past when he was in contention for the welterweight title.

“For you to say, ‘Oh, Ilia Topuria, he’s a bum’ — he’s not a bum,” Usman said. “He’s the world champion now. I’m not a bum, of course, because if you wanted an opportunity to fight me… I gave Conor two opportunities to fight me while I was champion. I told him, ‘Hey, if you want a shot at the third belt, who better?’ I was running away. Who better for you to show up and fight?

“He talked about it. He bounced back and forth when he wanted to return: ‘Maybe I’ll go up and get the third belt.’ It is what it is, Conor. If you wanted to fight, you had the opportunity – but you didn’t. Calling me a bum is kind of disrespectful. I didn’t disrespect you when you were having your problems. So, my dear, I think sometimes it’s easier, and it’s better – well, it’s not easier… it’s better if you put down that bottle of whiskey and actually get back to normal and be a good father and a good role model.”

McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC) returns in a welterweight bout against Michael Chandler (23-8 MMA, 2-3 UFC) at UFC 303, June 29, in Las Vegas (pay-per- view, ESPN, ESPN+).

For more information on the card, visit the MMA Junkie events hub to UFC 303.

This story originally appeared on MMA Junkie