Former UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman has made an effort to reignite his feud with Conor McGregor by laying down the gauntlet for the pair to fight this year.
McGregor was a notable omission from the White House card after months of making his desire to return at the much-hyped event clear, with long-time rival Michael Chandler instead squaring off against Mauricio Ruffy.
The Irishman said that he remains in “limbo” but still intends to move up a weight class to fight at 170lbs – and one of the welterweight division’s all-time greats has now hinted he could be McGregor’s next opponent.
Usman took to X and posted “Usman X McGregor 2026”, accompanied with the looking eyes emoji, appearing to cryptically call “The Notorious” out.
There is already heat between the pair dating back to an online spat in 2024, which saw McGregor lay into Usman in a volatile live stream.
“Usman is talking crazy right now,” McGregor said. “What happened in his last fight? I can’t even remember where you are at in your game bro.
“You’re nothing to me. F*** Kamaru Usman, he’s a bum. I’m a f*** about Usman. Not great times in the welterweight title picture.”
Usman responded by accusing McGregor of disrespect before alleging that the Irishman had ducked out of two opportunities to fight “The Nigerian Nightmare”.
While tensions have cooled in the two years since, Usman now looks to be trying to stoke the fire in a bid to share the cage with McGregor.
Usman, at the back-end of his career, is not on the most formidable run compared to some of his contenders at 170lbs. He is coming off the back of a decision win over Joaquin Buckley last June, although that followed a three-fight losing streak which started when he lost his title in stunning fashion to Briton Leon Edwards at UFC 278.
He nevertheless remains among the best the division has ever seen, staging a reign of terror as welterweight king between 2019 and 2022, during which he defeated the likes of Jorge Masvidal, Colby Covington and Gilbert Burns across his five successful title defences.
Former two-division champion McGregor, meanwhile, has not fought since July 2021, when he suffered a broken leg in his second straight loss to old rival Dustin Poirier.
He was due to return to the Octagon in June 2024 but sustained a broken toe, withdrawing from a planned fight with Chandler on two weeks’ notice.
McGregor is currently serving a backdated 18-month ban from the UFC after three absences during attempted drug tests. He will be able to fight again from 20 March.
He last year involved himself in politics but ceased his pursuit of becoming president of Ireland in September, saying the nation’s eligibility criteria was a “straitjacket”.
McGregor has also battled numerous legal issues in recent years and, in November 2024, a civil jury found in favour of a woman who had accused him of rape in 2018. McGregor was found liable for assault, and his appeal against the verdict failed in July, but he continues to deny all allegations against him.
