Conor McGregor has defended Ilia Topuria from criticism by Terence Crawford, accusing the retired boxer of a lack of “courage”.
On Sunday, Topuria defended the UFC lightweight title in the main event of a remarkable event at the White House. The Spanish-Georgian suffered his first-ever loss, as he retired on his stool before the final round against Justin Gaethje.
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In the aftermath, Crawford took aim at Topuria, who previously expressed a desire to box the modern great.
“This the guy that said he would knock me out and whoop me and Shakur [Stevenson] at the same time?” Crawford tweeted, alongside three laughing emojis.
McGregor, despite having traded barbs with Topuria in the past, defended his fellow mixed martial artist, replying to Crawford: “What the f*** are you saying? You can wrestle yet you are afraid of an mma fight. That to me is pitiful.
“The kid was beaten in an mma fight, of which you don’t have the courage for. What the f*** was with all these little boxers at this [White House] show yet no MMA fighters? #TheseBoysAintManEnough.”
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McGregor was referring to Crawford’s wrestling background as a youth, and a claim McGregor made in an interview with Ariel Helwani on Tuesday: that the boxer had rejected a two-fight deal with him, including one boxing match and one MMA bout.
“Shut yo drunk as [sic] up and get ready for yo fight,” Crawford replied. “He got his ass whoop [sic] like you did running yo mouth. I don’t have to come and fight in the cage. That’s the joy of boxing yall come to us we don’t have to come to yall.”
Crawford, 38, was hinting at McGregor’s upcoming fight with Max Holloway at UFC 329 – the Irishman’s first in five years, after a broken leg in 2021 – and McGregor’s boxing loss to Floyd Mayweather in 2017.
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McGregor was stopped by the boxing great in the 10th round, as he took a hiatus from an MMA career in which he had become the UFC’s first-ever dual-weight champion.
Crawford is similarly a history-maker in his own sport, having become boxing’s only-ever three-weight undisputed champion before retiring. He achieved that feat in September by outpointing Canelo Alvarez, before calling time on his career in December.
Meanwhile, McGregor is aiming to reignite his MMA career when he faces Holloway, 13 years after outpointing the Hawaiian in their first clash.
