5 UFC legends who are vocal critics of Conor McGregor

It's difficult not to have an opinion on Conor McGregor. He has been the UFC's poster boy for years. So, it's not surprising that 'The Notorious' has been attracting a lot of attention on social media, perhaps more so than the norm.

Things seem to have gone downhill since his loss to Dustin Poirier at UFC 264. Conor McGregor, well-known for his verbal jabs, has been called out by fellow fighters for his not-so-nice comments about Dustin's wife, Jolie Poirier.

Many, predictably, criticized the Irishman for his antics, even though some, like former UFC women's bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey, came to his support.

Due to his reputation over the years, it is no surprise that McGregor has taken a lot of flak for his actions in the business. He has faced criticism from all directions, including current and former UFC fighters.

To that end, here are five UFC legends who have been vocal critics of Conor McGregor.

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#5. Khabib Nurmagomedov

The former UFC lightweight champion has been a longtime rival of Conor McGregor. The two met inside the octagon for a high-voltage lightweight title bout at UFC 229, following Conor's return to the UFC.

While the fight amassed $2.4 million in pay-per-view buys – the highest in UFC history – its buildup was littered with controversy.

A few months before their matchup, a video of Nurmagomedov getting into an altercation with Conor's friend, Artem Lobov, went viral.

Watch Khabib Nurmagomedov and Artem Lobov's altercation here:

McGregor didn't take too well to his friend being bullied and rushed to confront Khabib at the media day event of UFC 223. Things escalated when he attacked the bus carrying Khabib and other fighters.

As expected, there was some intense trash-talking at the UFC 229 pre-fight press conference.

Conor attacked Khabib's father, calling him a "coward" who showed "fake respect," possibly to get under the Russian’s skin. Khabib didn't take the bait but promised to answer back in the octagon.

Watch Conor McGregor commenting on Khabib Nurmagomedov's father here:

Before the fight, Khabib poked fun at the Irishman for not speaking in Gaelic and also called him “drunk.” It came after Conor McGregor's proclamation that his Proper Twelve whisky would be “on the canvas” of the cage.

Speaking to Brett Okamoto of ESPN MMA, Khabib said:

"He speaks only one language and he talks about 'Oh, we fight with the English empire!' But what happened with your language? If you love your country, you have to speak your language. Do you just want to show up and say you're Irish and take the flag with you but you don't speak your language? You speak English."

Watch the full interview here:

Recently, they engaged once more on social media. Following Conor McGregor's loss to Dustin Poirier at UFC 264, Khabib Nurmagomedov took a jibe at ‘The Notorious.’ Khabib posted a tweet that read, "Good always defeats evil."

The tweet didn't sit well with Conor, who lashed out at his rival, commenting on Khabib's late father Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov. Although Conor later deleted the tweet, it was evident that he had taken things too far.

Khabib opened up about the incident on Hotboxin' with Mike Tyson. Speaking to Mike Tyson and Henry Cejudo, he said:

"When [Conor] talked about this, only evil can talk about your father, wife, kids, religion. If you’re normal human, you’re never going to talk about this stuff."

Watch Khabib talk about Conor on the podcast here:

#4. Daniel Cormier

Conor McGregor's attack on Khabib Nurmagomedov's late father didn't sit well with former UFC champ-champ Daniel Cormier. A close friend of Nurmagomedov, Cormier hit back at McGregor.

Speaking on his show DC & RC, Cormier expressed his reservations against Conor McGregor's attacks on Nurmagomedov and Poirier's families since his UFC 264 loss.

"Yeah, you know, absolutely crossed the line – And, you know, I think when stuff like that is being said, I think it’s a cry for help, right?"

Watch the full episode here:

McGregor fired back by posting a since-deleted tweet making fun of Cormier's weight with the caption: 'A cry for help if I ever seen one.'

Cormier hit back at McGregor, asking him to focus on his own career instead.

“Don’t worry about Daniel Cormier, don’t worry about the things that I’m saying. Don’t worry about how I’m dressing and how I’m looking. Don’t do that. Worry about the dudes that keep beating your ass every time you go into the octagon.”

Watch DC's response to Conor's deleted tweet:

Not known to walk away from a fight, 'The Notorious' hit back at 'DC' in a series of deleted tweets. He slammed Cormier for being drunk at the UFC 264 weigh-ins, an allegation that was rubbished by Lauro Sanko.

Recently, Cormier took a jibe at McGregor following his altercation with Machine Gun Kelly. He felt Conor was losing his gimmick, referring to McGregor's persona of a billionaire that made him popular.

Watch Daniel Cormier talk about Conor McGregor below:

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#3. Michael Bisping

Speaking on his podcast, UFC Hall of Famer and former UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping slammed Conor McGregor for his comments on 'DC.' Bisping warned McGregor to not pick a fight with Daniel Cormier, as it wouldn't go down too well for him.

Watch Michael Bisping comment on Conor McGregor below:

Conor McGregor retaliated by calling Bisping a "nobody." McGregor also tweeted about how he (Conor) used to "collect commission on all [Bisping's] fights."

In response, Bisping tweeted back joking how McGregor's legacy was on the verge of "getting deleted."

Conor went on to post another tweet to target Bisping, which didn't sit well with the UFC Hall of Famer.

'The Count' responded to Conor by calling him a "little guy."

Recently, Michael Bisping went on his YouTube channel to call out Conor McGregor's actions in public. Bisping advised McGregor not to be a bully and target people who are not professional fighters.

He was referring to Conor McGregor's recent run-ins with DJ Francesco Facchinetti and rapper Machine Gun Kelly.

"Pick up someone that can fight. You're a professional fighter. You are supposed to be looking for challenges but what he is essentially turned into right now is a bully you know and no one likes a bully."

Watch the full episode here:

#2. Randy Couture

Former UFC heavyweight champion Randy Couture criticized Conor McGregor for not raising his voice over low fighter pay in the UFC. Couture's comments came after YouTuber turned boxer Jake Paul criticized the lack of fair pay for UFC fighters.

While Couture was glad the problem was being addressed, he was disappointed that no MMA fighter was at the forefront.

Speaking to MMA Fighting, Couture called out McGregor for never taking the initiative to address these issues.

The UFC Hall of Famer was of the opinion that Conor had the best chance to draw attention to the fighter pay problems in the UFC during his high-profile boxing match against Floyd Mayweather.

Randy Couture felt Conor McGregor made the mistake of involving UFC in the mix. He was protected by the Ali Act and could have easily kept all the money he earned from the fight.

"The guy that really had the chance to shine a light on it was Conor McGregor. He got a boxing license. As soon as he got a boxing license, it rendered his UFC contract null and void. He had the protection of the Muhammad Ali Act when he became an official boxer with that boxing number."

It would have been a good opportunity to throw some light on the lack of transparency in the UFC regarding fighters' payment.

Watch Randy Couture speak to MMA Fighting below:

Couture also shared his thoughts on McGregor's verbal jabs at Khabib Nurmagomedov. Speaking to Fanatics View's James Lynch, Couture highlighted Conor's failure to back up his trash talk over recent years.

Watch Randy Couture talk about Conor McGregor on Fanatics View:

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#1. Henry Cejudo

Former UFC two-division champion Henry Cejudo is among the numerous others who have called out Conor McGregor for his repeated run-ins in public.

Conor McGregor's life has been a PR nightmare of late. Altercations with DJ Francesco and Machine Gun Kelly, along with his poor run in the UFC, have created a dent in his image.

Watch Conor's altercation with MGK here:

While speaking on The Triple C & Schmo Show, Henry Cejudo slammed Conor McGregor for fighting with MGK and throwing a drink at him and Megan Fox at the VMAs.

"There's nobody else cringier right now at this point or thirstier than Conor, the McTapper McGregor... I mean this guy is trying to fight Megan Fox for crying out loud."

Watch Henry Cejudo talk about Conor on The Triple C & Schmo Show below:

A month later, 'Triple C' fired shots at Conor McGregor again by calling him an alcoholic who was in dire need of therapy. Condemning Conor's altercation with DJ Francesco, Cejudo said:

"I don't know what's going on with Conor McGregor. But I definitely do know that he needs some therapy... If I was to give Conor McGregor, Conor McTapper, some advice, man you know, go to church dude. Find a bigger purpose in yourself and that's it. Focus on your family dude, because all this crazy nonsense, you're making us all look bad. You dirtbag."

Watch Cejudo's take on McGregor's antics below: