h

Conor McGregor apparently caught wind of Firas Zahabi’s assessment of a rematch between the Irishman and UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway. Obviously, he didn’t like it.

McGregor (21-4 MMA, 9-2 UFC) beat Holloway (20-3 MMA, 16-3 UFC) by unanimous decision at UFC Fight Night 26 in August 2013. Since then, “Blessed” has won 13 consecutive fights and solidified himself as the top fighter at 145 pounds. McGregor’s work after that matchup, which includes two UFC titles and a boxing match with Floyd Mayweather, is well documented.

Considering the original McGregor vs. Holloway fight came so earlier in the UFC tenure of both men, and they’ve both had so much success since, speculation about a potential rematch often flares up. Tristar head coach Firas Zahabi recently weighed in, and he favored the Hawaii to take a potential second fight.

“Holloway has grown leaps and bounds since then,” Zahabi said in a Q&A on the Tristar Gym YouTube page. “Holloway would outpunch him, outwork him. He would do very much what (Nate) Diaz did, but more. I think McGregor got away with a lot of stuff, like the leg kicks against Diaz, but I don’t think he’ll have that against Holloway.

“Holloway has the same type of output as Diaz, the same kind of chin as Diaz. He’s more athletic than Diaz, he has more variety in his attacks, he has more kicking, kneeing and elbowing, and his chin is just phenomenal. So I really think he would take it in the later rounds. I think the blueprint for beating McGregor is more well understood by the roster.”

Zahabi would go on to say he thinks McGregor’s knockout power would give him a good chance of winning by knockout in the first or second round, but ultimately he believes Holloway would be “very, very difficult” to beat.

That take didn’t sit well with “The Notorious,” who took to social media to put the coach on blast (via Twitter):

Hey firaz. Young man afraid to get in and fight, himself. Stop talking about me like you know me, you twerp.
You are what age? Why are not in there yourself? Are you not up to it?
You rent dorms and hit a clock for a living.
Shut your pie, kid.

Zahabi apparently has a long history of doubting McGregor. As MMA History Today pointed out on social media, the latest fight prediction is one of many who the coach didn’t see as going McGregor’s way. Apparently he’s noticed (via Twitter):

In response to Firas Zahabi constantly picking against Conor McGregor. Firas predicted Chad Mendes, Diaz both times, and Eddie Alvarez to defeat McGregor. He also believes Max Holloway would defeat him in a rematch.

For more on the upcoming UFC schedule, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.