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Conor McGregor has criticised Henry Cejudo for being a ‘novice’ after the former flyweight and bantamweight champion was critical of McGregor’s boxing technique online.

McGregor remains on the path to full fitness less than a year after suffering a gruesome injury to his left leg in competition, and has recently begun hitting the pads once again as he gets closer to his return to the cage. The Dubliner recently released some teaser footage to social media which showed him getting some work in at the Crumlin Boxing Club at which he began his combat odyssey as a youngster, describing his straights as ‘swords’ and his hooks as ‘hammers’.

Cejudo, though, who has leaned into his role as MMA’s premiere online troll since stepping away from the sport, took this as an opportunity to be critical of McGregor’s technique — and McGregor made sure to offer a riposte shortly afterwards on social media.

“The opening punches are the traps/feints/fakes. You ever hear or see that before?” McGregor shot back at Cejudo. “Your little feints won’t draw me out, kid. But pump a few real shots you might get a response. You are a little fat novice with about 2 ko’s. At bantam. I’ve 20. Across 3 divisions. Quiet, you bum!”

Cejudo is one of the few fighters to have held titles consecutively across two weight divisions in the UFC — but that was a door which was first broken down by McGregor at UFC 205 in New York when he added the lightweight strap previously held by Eddie Alvarez to the one he claimed a year prior against Jose Aldo.

Indeed, McGregor is the only fighter in UFC history to hold knockout wins across the featherweight, lightweight and welterweight divisions.