Conor McGregor called Khabib Nurmagomedov\'s wife a \'towel\' in a now-deleted photo tweet\, and his manager responded by calling the Irishman a \'rapist\'

Conor McGregor has been called a "rapist" on Twitter after the retired fighter tweeted, then deleted, an "insulting" photograph of Khabib Nurmagomedov's wife.

The latest incident will amp up the bitter and violent rivalry between the two athletes as the Irishman called Nurmagomedov's wife "a towel," which prompted an angry reaction from the wrestler's manager Ali Abdelaziz.

Here is a screenshot of McGregor's tweet, which has since been removed from the platform:

Nurmagomedov has not responded to the tweet, but his manager Abdelaziz took issue with the post and said it made fun of "her religion and belief."

He said on Twitter: "Talking s---, this guy is insulting someone's wife and making fun of her religion and belief. He doesn't realize he's insulting 1.5 billon Muslims."

He also said that "religion and family is a no no" before commenting on the Irishman's sexual assault allegation recently reported by the New York Times.

"You're f----- Conor," Abdelaziz said. "Let's see what the media is going to say now. He's a rapist, and a bitch."

Nurmagomedov and McGregor share a checkered history. When the unbeaten Dagestan athlete appeared to slap McGregor's friend and gymmate Artem Lobov in 2018, McGregor gathered some of his friends in Dublin, jetted to New York City, and attempted to confront Nurmagomedov who was on board a bus at the time.

McGregor was also seen on video throwing a metal dolly at the bus. It shattered a window and injured two athletes. He was later arrested by New York police and ordered to undergo anger management.

The extraordinary scene was then used to promote the wildly anticipated UFC 229 event between Nurmagomedov, the UFC's world lightweight champion, and McGregor, the challenger.

Nurmagomedov dominated in the fight as he dropped McGregor with a crushing right hand in the second round, before submitting him for good with a tight neck crank in the fourth.

Rather than celebrate the biggest win of his career, Nurmagomedov mounted the fence and charged at McGregor's cageside friend Dillon Danis. While that was going on, members of Nurmagomedov's team invaded the cage itself and exchanged punches with McGregor. Both fighters were eventually slapped with suspensions by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.

While Nurmagomedov was banned until June, McGregor is free to fight from April 6.

However, he recently announced his retirement from MMA - a statement which is believed by very few people.

Nurmagomedov commented on McGregor's retirement by saying "there can only be one king in the jungle."

In a separate tweet to his "towel" post, McGregor said he could return to the Octagon for a rematch against Nurmagomedov.

He said: "Don't be scared of the rematch you little scurrying rat. You will do what you are told like you always do."

It remains to be seen whether he stays retired, or negotiates a return to the sport.