Conor McGregor has taken to social media to hit out at his 'rat' ex-teammate Artem Lobov.
The pair were once close friends and training partners out of John Kavanagh's Straight Blast Gym. The relationship has in recent times turned sour, with news breaking this week that Lobov was suing McGregor for millions of Euros.
Lobov believes he is owed five per cent of McGregor's share of the profits from the $600million (£430m) sale of his Proper No.12 whiskey brand. The Russian born fighter is claiming that it was he who came up with the idea for McGregor to get invloved in the whiskey business and that he played a key role in the product's launch four years ago.
READ MORE: Inside Conor McGregor's friendship with Artem Lobov
The 36-year-old trained alongside McGregor after moving to Dublin from his homeland. He went on to have seven fights under the UFC banner but won just two before he switched to bare-knuckle boxing where he won two of his four bouts.
In an earlier interview, Lobov claimed he rejected a $1m payment from McGregor after he put together a deal to launch the whiskey. “The selling point of my book will be the Proper 12 Whiskey story. A few people know, but this was actually my idea," he said during an interview with talkSPORT.
"After the second Diaz fight, me and Conor were in the gym and we were talking one day and he says to me, ‘Artem, Thor, – ‘The Mountain’ out of Game of Thrones – I was chatting to him, and he’s offered me [the chance] to do my own vodka. I said to him before you even look any further, here’s what I know about Irish whiskey. I told him about the dominance of Irish whiskey and all of that. He said, ‘You go off and see what deal you can put together’ and I went on my way. Conor offered me $1m but I turned it down, I didn’t accept it."
McGregor, 34, has now taken to social media to hit back at Lobov, singing a chant which includes the words: "Artem is a rat".
A spokesperson for McGregor previously insisted Lobov's claim has no merit, saying: "Proper No. Twelve Irish whiskey was created, developed, branded and tirelessly promoted by Conor McGregor."
McGregor has not fought for almost 18 months since he broke his leg in his trilogy fight with Dustin Poirier last summer. Both himself and coach John Kavanagh had hoped for a 2022 return, but a 2023 return at Welterweight now seems the most likely scenario.
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