McGregor instigates backstage melee ahead of UFC 223
Three fights scrapped because of incident
NEW YORK — UFC star Conor McGregor has turned himself in to police in the wake of a backstage melee he instigated that has forced the removal of three fights off UFC’s biggest card of the year.
Video footage appears to show the promotion’s most bankable star throwing a hand truck at a bus full of fighters, after a press conference for UFC 223 at Barclays Center.
McGregor was being processed and no charges had been filed as of Thursday night.
Video showed McGregor with a group of people causing chaos Thursday as they took an elevator to the loading dock at Barclays Center. He can be seen tossing trash cans and being prevented from throwing a barricade at a bus during his unannounced appearance in New York.
The New York Police Department said McGregor threw a hand truck at a bus, causing minor injury to an individual on the bus. UFC said three fights on Saturday’s UFC 223 card have been scrapped as a result of the incident.
McGregor hasn’t fought for UFC since November 2016 and was stripped this week by UFC president Dana White of the 155-pound championship he had never defended. White also said this week he did not expect McGregor, 29, to attend Saturday’s fights.
McGregor profanely responded on Twitter and wrote, “You’ll strip me of nothing.” He was just getting started.
McGregor last fought in a boxing match that he lost to Floyd Mayweather Jr. on Aug. 26, 2017.
The Irishman is tight with UFC 223 fighter Artem Lobov, who was involved this week in a scuffle in a hotel with Khabib Nurmagomedov. Nurmagomedov fights Max Holloway for the lightweight championship left vacant by McGregor.
Lobov was yanked from the card and banned from the building. Michael Chiesa was sent to the hospital with injuries suffered in the attack and was forced out of his scheduled fight against Anthony Pettis.
Flyweight Ray Borg suffered multiple cornea abrasions in the wake of the McGregor attack and his fight against Brandon Moreno was also scratched.