Conor McGregor's recent actions have landed him in some hot water with the mixed martial arts (MMA) community - but at the same time the masterful promoter has thrown a ton of hype into a potential fight against UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov.
The Eagle captured the lightweight title by defeating Al Iaquinta at UFC 223 in Brooklyn. The title previously held by McGregor was stripped from the Irishman - who has never defended a title in his UFC career - and awarded to Khabib for his victory.
Shortly before the fight, however, McGregor had made quite an impact on fight week with some antics he performed alongside some friends from Ireland.
McGregor stormed the parking lot in which two UFC fighter buses were being held and attacked them. McGregor and company threw various objects at the buses and caused pure and utter chaos.
One of the highlights of the event was McGregor throwing a dolly at the bus, which shattered a window and injured two fighters who were scheduled to fight.
UFC lightweight Michael Chiesa was cut up by some glass very badly and was bleeding profusely. Flyweight Ray Borg seemed fine after the incident, however, it was later revealed his vision was being disrupted as a result of some glass particles getting in his eye.
McGregor later turned himself into the local police and was subsequently released on bail. The whole point of McGregor's attack was to get back at Nurmagomedov.
The Russian cornered McGregor's training partner, Artem Lobov, at their hotel with some of his team and threatened him. This prompted McGregor to come to New York early and retaliate against the AKA product.
He shouted at Khabib during the attack to get out of the bus but he remained put. Now a fight between McGregor and Nurmagomedov is all anybody's talking about - and UFC President Dana White knows it.
White was recently interviewed by TMZ Sports and asked about potential punishment for McGregor, and White admitted he won't do anything until the Irishman is punished by the law first (quotes via MMA Fighting):
“He’s gotta be punished by the law first,” White said when asked how officials were handling the McGregor situation. “Let’s see what happens in New York.”
As for a fight between Nurmagomedov and McGregor, while some would love for them to fight in The Eagle's native Russia, White says a fight of that magnitude will have to happen in Las Vegas:
“If you do a fight that big, you’ve got to do it in Vegas,” White said. “Khabib will fight in Russia at some point, but it won’t be that fight.”
What are your thoughts on White's comments regarding a fight between McGregor and Nurmagomedov? Do you think that the fight will take place this year? And what were your thoughts on McGregor's attack on the fighter buses? Let us know your thoughts on the matter in the comments section below!
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