Conor McGregor accused of disrespectful comments from Kamaru Usman: ‘You can’t say that’

Kamaru Usman accused Conor McGregor to disrespect him after the Irishman took aim at UFC great welterweight in a recent fan Q&A.

McGregor is expected to fight for the first time in three years when he faces michael chandler on June 29, and the former double weight champion’s promotional campaign is underway.

As part of this campaign, McGregor appeared in a Duels live broadcast, attacking various fighters. One of his targets was Usman, who held the UFC welterweight title from 2019 to 2022.

“Usman is talking crazy right now,” McGregor said. “Where is Usman now? What happened in your last fight again? I can’t even remember where you are in the game, bro, right? You are nothing to me.

Since losing the 170-pound belt to Leon Edwards in 2022, Usman has suffered back-to-back points losses – one against Edwards in March 2023 and one against Khamzat Chimaev at middleweight in October.

The 37-year-old Nigerian-American is currently out of a fight and it is unclear whether he will return to welterweight – where McGregor fights Chandler – or remain at middleweight.

Questioning McGregor’s criticism of him, Usman said on Pound 4 pounds podcast: “At what point does it become more than money? At what point does this become [about] 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 did, but Conor, me too. You were a champion, so was I. So, at the end of the day, where I have a little problem is you come in saying, ‘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 get to the top of the sport. That seems to be something he’s missing.”

McGregor, a former featherweight and lightweight champion, fought three times at welterweight; the Irishman, 35, traded wins with Nate Diaz at 170 pounds in 2016 and beat Donald Cerrone in 2020.

In late 2021 and early 2022, McGregor repeatedly spoke about his desire to become the first three-weight champion in UFC history, while Usman held the welterweight strap.

“I’m not a bum, of course,” Usman said, “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 chance 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 fight.

“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 you’d better put down that bottle of whiskey and actually get back to normal and be a good father and a good role model.