Hasbulla Magomedov has branded Paulo Costa "as bad as Conor McGregor" after the UFC star took to social media to slam the Russian social media sensation.
The Brazilian middleweight is one of a rare few fighters who have taken a public stance against the Russian, telling fans in a recent tweet that he feels people who enjoy him are "weird people". McGregor has taken a similar position and declared that he wanted to kick Hasbulla like a football after watching him prank a number of celebrities.
However, the 3'3" influencer has a number of supporters in the fight game, and recently signed an ambassadorial contract with the UFC. Alexander Volkanovski and Khabib Nurmagomedov are two of his biggest celebrity fans, while he has also appeared in the cage with lightweight title contender Islam Makhachev.
But Costa is not a fan, responding to a Twitter follower who asked him about the Russian by saying in his trademark broken English: "If you don’t hate this baby you’re a weird peoples. Good night." Hasbulla hit back with a tweet of his own, saying: "All the tough talk from people who never @ me. You’re as bad as Conor McGregor."
McGregor labelled Hasbulla a "smelly inbred" in a series of now-deleted tweets last month, saying: "I’d love to boot that little gimp Hasbulla over a goal post. How much to get him on the volley? I’m gonna make it my mission to score a three pointer with him one day, hon the GAA." Kicking a ball over the posts in Gaelic football is one point, while scoring a goal is worth three."
Dana White, the UFC President, has warned McGregor that he could end up "in trouble" if he continues to call for a fight with the Russian. Speaking on My Mom's Basement podcast, White said: "Conor better watch himself. If he runs into Hasbulla then he's going to be in some big trouble!"
Are you on Team McGregor and Costa, or Team Hasbulla? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below!
Hasbulla doesn't speak very much English, but has somebody write responses from his official social media pages when the likes of McGregor go after him. After the initial McGregor messages, he wrote that they should fight, and mocked him for his loss to Khabib Nurmagomedov.
"Hey uncle Dana White and UFC please make it happen," he tweeted. "Let me eat this chicken Conor McGregor. I'm hungry, I’ll smash him with my mountain spirit. My brother Khabib [Nurmagomedov] smashed him and all his team, now is my time to rise! I don’t follow bums… I didn’t know someone was running their mouth, @ me next time."
Hasbulla will be in attendance next month at UFC 280 to watch Makhachev fight Charles Oliveira for the 155lb title, and challenged McGregor to meet him there. "I have my UFC contract now," he wrote. "If Conor McGregor is really a man… see me in Abu Dhabi. Got smashed by Khabib already. Guess his money from [Floyd] Mayweather ran out and he needs more attention".
