How The Feud Started
An unexpected feud has emerged featuring former UFC featherweight and lightweight champion Conor McGregor and PFL star Paul Hughes after the young Irishman showed respect towards the Nurmagomedov family and received an invitation to train with them in Dagestan.
The interactions between the two Irishmen started after Paul Hughes booked himself a shot at the PFL lightweight title after defeating AJ McKee last October. Hughes would be facing undefeated champion Usman Nurmagomedov, cousin of former UFC lightweight champion and Conor McGregor’s most heated rival, Khabib Nurmagomedov. This matchup sparked significant hype within the MMA community, especially after Hughes invited McGregor to his corner, with Khabib set to corner Usman.
Tension to this matchup was heightened after Khabib made a statement via X claiming Ireland only have 1-2 memorable contenders, “You can’t compare Irish fighters with fighters from Dagestan. We dominate amateur MMA, and it’s not even close.”
Nurmagomedov followed up with, “When it comes to professional MMA, we have champions, contenders, and ranked fighters in every major league. Show me Irish fighters who are currently title contenders in the top 3 MMA promotions. At best, you might be able to name 1 or 2 fighters.”
Nurmagomedov’s claims regarding Dagestan and Ireland | X
McGregor responded in a now deleted tweet on X: “And all yous a-lickers around the way years stood on no ground for your own. Sickening stuff, look at yous now. You deserve exactly what’s there for yous, not a thing. Nothing. Traitorous b*ms. The Yellow teeth’s we call ya’s,” McGregor wrote. “Pea brains in a cage. Panache = zero. Creativity = poop. Wherewithal = fart. Embarrassing to me.”
Despite the back-and-forth between McGregor and Nurmagomedov, the plan for McGregor to corner Hughes never came to fruition. The end result had Hughes losing to Nurmagomedov in a close fight, with both fighters having their moments in the five-round battle.
McGregor & Hughes Tension
During their post-fight interview, both Hughes and the Nurmagomedov corner showed respect to each other, with Hughes saying in their interaction, “I am not like this other guy” referring to McGregor “I am my own man.”
Hughes’ words to Nurmagomedov’s corner | Will Harris
McGregor responded to these comments via X saying, “Too right YOU’RE NOT! B-hole Licker” Following up with “Get that flag off you little know what you are c*nt from up there.”
Conor McGregor’s response | X
These comments from McGregor received a response from Hughes via X saying, “@TheNotoriousMMA always said you were the GOAT, paid homage at every opportunity. But coming at my Irish identity just shows where your head is at.”
Paul Hughes’ response to McGregor | X
Nurmagomedov has even backed the young Irishman, posting on his Instagram story earlier today, “You are a real Irishman @PaulHughesMMA and not a r*pist and dr*g addict like this b*stard.”
Nurmagomedov reassuring Hughes | Instagram
Though the feud between the two Irishmen remains unresolved, McGregor has since deleted his posts from social media.
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