The feud between unbeaten Bellator featherweight prospects A.J. McKee and James Gallagher continues to grow, and McKee has no problem throwing more fuel on the fire.

McKee (8-0 MMA, 8-0 BMMA), who is coming off of a first-round knockout of Anthony Mazzotta at April’s Bellator 178, has made it clear he’s not a fan of Gallagher (6-0 MMA, 3-0 BMMA), a teammate of UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor.

Gallagher has followed McGregor’s approach of making bold proclamations and tearing down fellow fighters with his words. He’s backed up his talk in the cage thus far, but McKee believes his time as an undefeated fighter will soon run out.

Whether McKee will be the first to put a blemish on Gallagher’s record remains to be seen. The Irishman has his most difficult to fight to date scheduled against Chinzo Machida at June’s Bellator 180 event in New York City, and McKee isn’t all that certain he will overcome the challenge.

“Of course that’s his toughest test so far,” McKee told MMAjunkie of Gallagher’s upcoming fight. “I really don’t think he’s fought anybody. We’ll see. Even Chinzo, he’s talking about how he’s a legend. He’s not a legend. (Lyoto) Machida is the legend. His brother, he’s a basic fighter just like Gallagher.

“We’ll see how that goes. I would like the winner of either one of them. Whoever wins, I’m willing to fight. I’ll fight anybody.”

Although pitting McKee against Gallagher at Bellator 180 seemed like a natural pairing, “The Mercenary” said he understands why it didn’t happen. He believes in the Bellator matchmaking process of building toward marquee fights but said he would be ready to throw down with Gallagher at any time – even on short notice.

“I think Bellator is letting that kind of build up,” McKee said. “It’s smart because it is a business, and there’s a lot of marketing to these fights. Letting the tension build up and letting that be a fight the fans want, it’s a smart business move.

“I’m ready to get back in there whenever. If they give me a phone call, I’m ready. Whenever they need somebody to fill in or if they just want me to fight, it’s just about being prepared at all times so we can get everything and anything done.”

McKee admitted even before his knockout of Mazzotta at Bellator 178 that the rivalry with Gallagher has provided a much needed boost of motivation in the gym. He said the fight is hardly his be-all, end-all, though, because ultimately he has much higher aspirations, such as the Bellator title.

To this point, McKee has spent his entire career under the Bellator banner and said his top priority is to take the 145-pound belt from current champion Patricio Freire. He doesn’t view Gallagher on anywhere close to the same level as “Pitbull,” but said if he has to go through him to get his title shot, he will be happy to do so.

“I see him as a joke,” McKee said. “To even think he’s ready for title contention or belts is funny. At first he was calling me out, saying that he wants to fight me. Then I go (knock out Mazzotta) and all of a sudden he doesn’t want to fight me anymore? That’s funny to me; that shows that fear. He barked up the wrong tree.

“One of my quotes for him is, ‘You got a dog barking up a tree while the lion’s climbing it.’ He knows there’s a lion in front of him, and he’s still just a little puppy dog. At the end of the day, Patricio ‘Pitbull,’ he’s the one with that belt, so he’s the one I’m looking forward to fighting most.”

For more on Bellator’s upcoming schedule, including Bellator 180, check out the MMA Rumors section of the site.