McGregor-Mayweather: Conor swipes at another boxing champ

UFC champion Conor McGregor has another world champion in his sights — and this one is way out of his weight class.

LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 14: Conor McGregor during the Floyd Mayweather Jr. v Conor McGregor World Press Tour at SSE Arena on July 14, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Matthew Lewis/Getty Images)

ANYONE with a social media account will know another nonsensical “challenge” phenomenon has picked up speed over the past week.

Conor McGregor’s peculiar, arm-flailing warm-up method caught the eye of thousands of fans at his media workout.

Instagram exploded with fans emulating the 29-year-old’s loose-limbed antics, labelling it the “McGregor challenge”. It didn’t take long for Conor to spot the craze and take a swipe at a number of its participants.

“I’ve seen some videos,” McGregor said during his media conference call yesterday. “It is what it is. It’s lighthearted, I don’t take it personal. If anything, I see stiffness in every single one of them. You must have the limbs free.

“The shoulders must be disconnected. You must have the ability to disconnect your shoulders and reconnect it at the point of impact.”

Former cruiserweight world champion David Haye caught the wrong end of McGregor’s sharp tongue after joining in on the challenge.

“David Haye is a man who has pulled out of contests over a sore baby toe,” he said. “So he must be careful with the way he hits pads.”

BOTCHED: MCGREGOR ‘CORPSE’ COPS A BEATING

If you’ve reached a point in fame where someone spends hours carving your likeness into wax, chances are you’ve made it in life.

The big risk, of course, is the chance of the artist horribly botching it and preserving a wacky version of your face instead.

Dublin’s National Wax Museum has unveiled a fresh sculpture of their hometown hero as his anticipated megafight approaches. Creating a full-sized statue of Ireland’s biggest name was always going to be a gutsy move and the museum has already begun to feel the backlash.

It’s not as terrible as Cristiano Rondaldo’s distorted statue, but something about it is a little off-putting.

Looks like something out of a UFC video game.

The museum copped flak on Twitter after revealing the statue but didn’t shy away from giving its haters a roasting.

The New York Daily News went so far as calling it “sickly” and “corpselike”,

Yeah looks more like you to be fair 😜@spurcey @FM104 @TheNotoriousMMA

— Wax Museum Plus (@waxmuseumplus) August 16, 2017

How? You're making a judgement from a photo you've seen online @ShaneDoyle79 Come down and actually see it then we'd take u seriously

— Wax Museum Plus (@waxmuseumplus) August 16, 2017

We'd like to thank @notorioustony1 for visiting our launch yesterday. Delighted to have a true gent such as yourself down. #ThankYou pic.twitter.com/Z3v1WN77Ih

— Wax Museum Plus (@waxmuseumplus) August 17, 2017

‘I’VE BEEN DISCARDED’

It’s not like Conor McGregor to let exterior forces get to him, but not even The Notorious could hide his gripes with his army of doubters.

From Mike Tyson to Joe Rogan, McGregor has copped a serve from a number of massive names in the combat sports world.

“I mean, how many times have I been slewn by people?” he said. “It’s give and take. I get my fair share of hate and my fair share of love.

“Look at every boxing analyst. It’s like I’ve been discarded, it’s like I’m not welcome.

“The disregard to my skill set ... I look at so many people who have their minds closed to how things can be done (thinking) there’s a set way (to win) and there’s no other way.

“If that was the case we never would have reached across the waters, sailed to other lands and would never have went to space.”

If McGregor wins, the world will have to eat its words.

ANTICIPATED UNDERCARD FIGHT CANCELLED

Showtime’s jam-packed undercard for McGregor-Mayweather took a hit after former world champion Shawn Porter was forced to withdraw from the event.

Sherdog.com revealed the 29-year-old had to pull out of his fight with Thomas Dulorme after a death in his family.

Olympic bronze medalwinner Yordenis Ugas has stepped up to the plate to face Dulorme on extremely short notice.

“I have been training for this fight for several weeks now. I knew at the time Porter was going to be a tough challenger, so I took training camp extremely serious,” Dulorme said. “Fighting on a card this big, you cannot doubt anyone in front of you.

“My new opponent doesn’t change much. All I can do is continue to stay focused and listen to my team and bring the best fight I can.”

Shawn Porter has been forced to withdraw from one of the biggest nights in boxing history.