UFC champion Ilia Topuria has brutally called out Conor McGregor by viciously vowing to “plant these knuckles in his brain”.
The Georgian-Spaniard knocked out Alexander Volkanovski in February to win the featherweight title.
And he makes his first defence on October 26 in Abu Dhabi against former champion Max Holloway.
But in the midst of the build up, Topuria has been engaged in a war of words with McGregor.
He said on Instagram Live: “F*** you, Conor. All day every day. He’s just not on my level, not at all.
“Otherwise, I’d gladly plant these knuckles in his brain to see if I could fix it and straighten his nose.
“When we meet, you won’t even look me in the eye because you’ll s*** yourself.
“McChicken. On the 12th, he’ll be at an event in Spain while I’m on the frontlines, not as a spectator.
“I’ll be headlining an event. He’s been missing out on big time. So deal with it, McGregor. F*** you!”
McGregor is in Marbella on October 12 to promote Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship, which he co-owns.
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And during a stream with Duelbits, he said: “I’d grab him by the scruff of the chest and slap that little nose off him.
“Little ding-dong of a thing he is. I’m f***ing Spanish. I’m in Marbella, bro. I’m in Marbella at the bare-knuckle stall, let’s see what’s what!
“We’ll bounce and have a bare-knuckle. You little fool, I’ll cave your head in. You little short-ass thing, I’ll box your jaw in.
“On sight, I’m in Marbella, Spain. I’m in Marbella, Spain, October 12th. See what happens to you. See what happens if you cross me.”
McGregor, 36, has not fought since July 2021 when he broke his leg in the cage in the opening round against Dustin Poirier, 35.
And he suffered further setback when a toe injury forced him out of his scheduled June 29 return against Michael Chandler.
Chandler, 38, has since signed to rematch Charles Oliveira, 34, on November 16 to leave McGregor’s comeback up in the air.
And Topuria, 27, was quick to fire back at the Irishman following the verbal onslaught.
He fumed: “Conor, I’ll dance on your head. Conor’s problem is I’ll slap these nuts on his forehead, right here, and I’ll warm him up with this.
“Then I’ll throw him down and stomp on his head. See you around. Let’s hope we don’t run into McGregor here, or there’ll be a funeral.”