UFC star Conor McGregor is reportedly in police custody and facing criminal charges following a bizarre incident at the UFC 223 media day at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
McGregor was seen on camera throwing a hand truck through a window on a bus that was carrying a number of other UFC fighters. McGregor later turned himself in to authorities. New York City police have charged him with one count of felony criminal mischief and three counts of misdemeanor assault.
Three Fights Cancelled
The incident will have a serious impact on UFC 223, which will take place Saturday night. Three fights from the card are off following the attack, forcing one fight to be pulled up from the undercard to fill out the schedule.
Both Michael Chiesa and Ray Borg were forced out of their respective fights because of injuries sustained in the attack. Chiesa has facial lacerations, while the UFC says Borg suffered multiple corneal abrasions.
Artem Lobov, a teammate of McGregor’s, was also pulled from his fight against Alex Caceres for his involvement in the attack.
Teammate Retaliation?
While McGregor hasn’t attempted to explain his actions, there are a couple of likely motives for the incident. Earlier this week, Lobov was involved in a minor scuffle with Khabib Nurmagomedov in their hotel, which could have prompted the response from McGregor.
That story was supported by UFC President Dana White, who told ESPN that he spoke with McGregor via text after the incident.
“[McGregor was] apologetic about the people he wasn’t trying to hurt,” White said. “But he felt the Khabib thing had to be done.”
The Irish superstar was also angry that he was about to be stripped of his lightweight championship. McGregor has not fought in the UFC since November 2016, when he defeated Eddie Alvarez to win the UFC Lightweight Championship.
That period of inactivity had led to the crowning of Tony Ferguson as interim champion in the division. A fight between Ferguson and Nurmagomedov was scheduled for Saturday, with the winner becoming the official champion. But an injury to Ferguson forced him out of the bout, and the fight was ultimately cancelled after last-minute replacement Max Holloway could not safely make weight on short notice.
McGregor was seen Friday morning being led out of Brooklyn’s 78th Precinct by police. He was expected to be arraigned Friday in Brooklyn Criminal Court.
Fighter Cian Cowley, who was part of the McGregor entourage who attacked the bus, was also charged with assault and criminal mischief.
The melodramatic nature of the incident felt reminiscent of the kinds of staged events the WWE uses to push their storylines. But White was adamant that there was absolutely nothing planned about the attack.
“This is the last stunt on Earth that we’d ever pull,” White told ESPN. “This is embarrassing for the sport and obviously for the UFC. This is the furthest thing from a stunt. This is bad.”
