Getty Conor McGregor talks to the press after he pleaded guilty to a single violation of disorderly conduct, in Brooklyn Criminal Court on July 26, 2018.
Conor McGregor turned himself in to police last April after he and a group of others attacked a bus and left fighter Michael Chiesa with a facial laceration, according to the Washington Post.
An altercation at UFC 223 Media Day in Brooklyn at the Barclays Center shows the lightweight champion picking up a dolly and throwing it through the window of a bus carrying a group of other UFC fighters. You can check out video of the incident below.
yoooooo… first time seeing this one. Conor has legit lost his mind.
Here’s what you need to know about the brawl:
1. McGregor Was Allegedly Trying To Reach Fighter Khabib Nurmagomedov, Who Was In an Earlier Hotel Altercation With Fellow Fighter Artem Lobov
Conor McGregor. Picks up guard rail. Attempts to throw it at bus. ABSOLUTE CHAOS IN NEW YORK. #UFC223 (Via Felice Herrig’s IG story)
McGregor was allegedly trying to get at UFC 223 main event fighter Khabib Nurmagomedov because the Russian had been involved in a hotel altercation with fellow fighter and friend Artem Lobov. According to CBS, McGregor tried to stick up for Lobov, a close friend, and apparently loaded a private jet with a group of friends and flew to New York to confront Nurmagomedov.
The incident came shortly after UFC President Dana White announced that McGregor would be stripped of his 155-pound championship belt, which he won at UFC 205 in November 2016. White also announced that the winner of the UFC 223 main event between Nurmagomedov and Max Holloway would receive McGregor’s belt.
You’s’ll strip me of nothing you’s do nothing cunts.
After a profanity-laced tweet directed towards the UFC, McGregor and a group of supporters arrived at Barclays Center in New York to interrupt the UFC 223 press conference and began attacking the bus.
Police were dispatched to Barclays Center around 1:36 p.m. ET Thursday and, upon their arrival, they were told McGregor and about 10 others “became irate and began throwing various items, damaging property at the location,” according to police spokesperson George Tsourovakas.
2. McGregor & Others Began Hurling Objects at a Bus Carrying a Group of UFC Fighters, Injuring Three Fighters
According to multiple witnesses, McGregor ran into the arena’s loading dock and began hurling objects at a bus, which was taking a group of UFC fighters to a nearby hotel, ESPN reports. In a video posted by TMZ Sports, McGregor is seen lifting a dolly and throwing it into one of the bus windows.
“It was scary, scary for everybody,” witness and UFC fighter Felice Herring told CBS. “Every single person on the fighter buses, he put our lives in danger.”
According to Sports Illustrated, “reporters on the scene revealed that McGregor and his entourage threw chairs, trash cans and barricades towards buses that were full of fighters, including Nurmagomedov. Chiesa, suffered a laceration on his forehead, affecting his availability.”
Three people were injured altogether, forcing the removal of several fights from UFC 223, the biggest card of the year.
“Now that the king of MMA goes and acts like a hoodlum, that does not make the sport of MMA look good right now,” Herring said.
3. McGregor Turned Himself In & Was Promptly Let Out on a $50,000 Bail, But Faced Charges of Assault, Reckless Endangerment and Criminal Mischief
According to the Independent, McGregor was held overnight and remained in police custody through the following morning as he awaited a court appearance in Brooklyn. MMA Fighting reported that Cian Cowley, McGregor’s SBG teammate, also was charged with one count of assault and one count of criminal mischief at the time.
McGregor was led out of the 78th Precinct in Brooklyn for a court appearance after he turned himself in, according to video posted by New York’s WNBC. You can view video of him being led out of the precinct above.
McGregor was inevitably ordered to stay away from a list of MMA members and have no contact with them, including on social media. However, despite being charged with assault, criminal mischief, and reckless endangerment, he was still able to walk out on a $50,000 bail, keep his passport, and continue traveling between the United States and his native Ireland.
Mixed martial arts star Conor McGregor expresses regret over bus brawl after brief court appearance t.co/lyXffFGDnc
He eventually accepted a plea deal in July after making another court appearance at Kings County Courthouse in Brooklyn. The court agreed to drop both felony charges against McGregor, and in exchange, McGregor pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor count of disorderly conduct.
Deadspin reports that “he will also have to perform a few days of community service, attend an anger management course, pay for the damage he did to the bus, and honor the terms of three two-year protective orders served against him, two of which were given to UFC fighters Michael Chiesa and Ray Borg.”
4. Dana White Called The Incidient The “Most Disgusting Thing That Happened in The History of This Company”
According to White, “They stormed the building, got down to the loading docks where the fighters were getting on buses and started to attack the buses with trash cans, dollies,” White said. “… This is the most disgusting thing that has ever happened in the history of this company.”
“I don’t know if he’s on drugs or what his deal is, but to come and do this and act like this? You’re talking about a guy who has a baby. He just had a kid.”
White told FS1’s “First Things First” that he spoke to McGregor via text shortly after the incident, who claimed the confrontation “had to be done.”
“It was probably the worst conversation we ever had,” White said. “We talked before he turned himself in.
5. The UFC Released a Statement Regarding The Incident, Calling McGregor’s Actions “Completely Unacceptable”
The UFC released a statement after the incident, condoning McGregor’s actions as “completely unacceptable” and disinviting McGregor and Lobov to the UFC events that week.
You can read the full statement below:
“During today’s media event at Barclays Center to promote UFC 223: Khabib vs. Holloway, Conor McGregor and Artem Lobov entered the building accompanied by over a dozen individuals.
The group, which included McGregor and Lobov, vandalized the vehicle that contained a number of athletes competing at the event taking place this weekend. NYPD was immediately alerted and is currently in the process of investigating the situation. UFC is working very closely with the New York Athletic Commission, Barclays Center security and law enforcement authorities. All parties are working together to ensure the highest standard of proper safety precautions are implemented to protect the fans and athletes.
The organization deems today’s disruption completely unacceptable and is currently working on the consequences that will follow. Immediately, Lobov has been removed from this weekend’s card and individuals involved in the incident are not welcome at tomorrow’s ceremonial weigh-in or Saturday’s event at Barclays Center.”
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