Conor McGregor pokes fun at Ilia Topuria for imitating antics
Jose Aldo, Dana White, and Conor McGregor | Photo by Sportsfile/Corbis/Sportsfile via Getty Images
Conor McGregor sees some similarities between himself and Ilia Topuria and he’s not impressed.
Ahead of Topuria’s featherweight title defense against Max Holloway this Saturday at UFC 308, he and McGregor have been engaged in a social media spat, with Topuria suggesting Holloway should be embarrassed for once losing to McGregor, and McGregor warning Topuria that his reign could end soon if he’s not careful.
McGregor, a former UFC champion at 155 and 145 pounds, also shared a video from a UFC meme account to his Instagram Stories, in which his promotional tactics were compared to Topuria’s. See the clip below.
Conor McGregor just reposted this video to his story
IG / @TheNotoriousMMA #UFC308 #UFC #MMA pic.twitter.com/8bIXv2cCnF
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) October 21, 2024
Back in 2015, McGregor was embroiled in a feud with then-featherweight champion Jose Aldo. The build-up to their UFC 196 bout featured several tense moments, with McGregor stealing the show at a press conference in Dublin when he snatched Aldo’s belt and held it triumphantly in the air.
McGregor went on to score a one-punch, 13-second knockout when the two fought in December of that year.
Topuria pulled a similar stunt ahead of his fight with Alexander Volkanovski this past February. Volkanovski targeted a sixth straight featherweight title defense heading into UFC 298, and like McGregor, Topuria took his opportunity to prematurely snatch the belt in a press conference for the event.
Also like McGregor, Topuria was victorious via knockout, putting Volkanovski away in the second round.
The video shared by McGregor makes its stance on the two clear with a caption that reads, “Spot the difference” and describes Topuria’s effort as “Level: Medium.”
Topuria’s first title defense is just around the corner as he takes on Holloway in Abu Dhabi this Saturday. As for McGregor, he has not fought since July 2021 and still awaits his next booking.
