UFC fans fear for Conor McGregor in potential Kamaru Usman title fight

Conor McGregor has been linked with a shot at the UFC welterweight title - and fans are unanimous in their reaction.

The Irishman is a former two-weight champion having won belts at featherweight and lightweight.

He has long claimed he could also win a belt at 170lb despite having only three fights in the division - two against Nate Diaz and most recently against Donald Cerrone.

But the manager of current champion Kamaru Usman has suggested McGregor would be next in line for a title shot if leading contender Jorge Masvidal instead seeks a rematch with Diaz.

The rivals clashed last November with Masvidal winning by TKO after the third round when the referee declared the badly-cut Diaz could no longer continue.

Usman's representative Ali Abdelaziz said: "It looks like No.1 contender wants to fight Nate Diaz now.

"Conor McGregor, hey you want a title shot ? Come to daddy, Kamaru Usman will give you one and he promises first two rounds without takedowns only slaps."

Fans immediately dismissed the fight, however, claiming McGregor would be badly beaten in a one-sided contest.

One tweeted: "Kamaru Usman vs Conor McGregor for the welterweight title! What a huge fight. But, Kamaru would totally destroy Conor, even worse than what Khabib [Nurmagomedov] did to him."

Another added: "McGregor couldn’t beat [Colby] Covington, let alone Usman. He'd be gassed by round three and strangled" while a third said: "McGregor has more chances of winning a lottery than surviving two rounds with Usman!"

McGregor defeated Cerrone inside 40 seconds in January and had hoped to fight three times this year before the coronavirus crisis struck.

He is believed to have set his sights on fighting in July but the list of potential opponents is dwindling after Dustin Poirier announced he will take on Dan Hooker.

With Justin Gaethje waiting to face Nurmagomedov in September, McGregor's likely opponents are Diaz, Masvidal or Usman.