What next for Conor McGregor after Brooklyn? UFC experts weigh in
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The jury’s out on whether the former featherweight and lightweight champion will return to the UFC
After Conor McGregor’s chaotic visit to Brooklyn last week, we now find ourselves with a big question mark hanging over his future.
McGregor spent a night in police custody last Thursday after being charged with attacking a bus filled with UFC fighters and supporting staff at a media event to promote last weekend's UFC 223 bout - at which Khabib Nurmagomedov was eventually crowned lightweight champion, after much drama.
The Irishman was released on $50,000 bail after the bus incident, and has another hearing on 14 June. The question now is: what's next for the ‘Notorious’? Here, the BBC MMA Show’s Dan Hardy and Nick Peet run through what might be the ramifications of McGregor’s actions.
Listen to 5 live MMA podcast: Thrown in jail, now out on bail - what next for Conor McGregor?
More money, more problems
Conor McGregor on the MayMac world tour
“The last 12 months have been insane on planet Conor,” Nick says. “Unfortunately, sometimes these guys who come from working class backgrounds, who dream of making it and becoming millionaires and billionaires, when they finally get there, it all goes to their head.
“Conor’s living in a world where nobody’s telling him ‘no’. Nobody’s holding him back, or asking him to question his actions, and he’s running wild at the moment.”
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Adds Dan Hardy: "He also doesn’t have a bank account to say no. If he wants to get all his mates on a private jet and fly to New York to cause trouble, he can absolutely afford to do that.
“If you put that kind of money in the wrong hands, to somebody who’s not used to managing those kind of finances, and all of the problems that come with it, it’s going to cause more problems. He’s not making conscious decisions, because he’s making decisions from his ego.”
Was it staged?
Conor McGregor
"I had a lot of people contacting me saying, 'Any other sport, this guy gets sacked'," says Nick. "So why are the UFC not sacking him? [Because] this hasn’t done anything but bring eyeballs to the UFC.
“Whether they like it or not, that’s good business. If the UFC was to sack Conor McGregor, every promotion on the planet, even boxing promotions, would be knocking on his door with open chequebooks.”
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Examining the incident in Brooklyn, Nick noticed what he considers a key detail.
“Let's look at the bigger picture here," he explains. "There’s something more going on. There are a lot of security guys trying to usher Conor away from the bus, yet nobody actually tackles him. There’s nobody actually there saying, 'stop'. Conor makes no effort to board the bus, he just wants to throw things at the bus."
Dan adds that the whole incident may have been a ploy to postpone McGregor’s impending fight with Nurmagomedov.
“Conor McGregor knew that he’d get a lot of attention by doing this," Dan says. “He also knew that it would maybe exclude him from competition for a while, which would give him a chance to prepare for someone like Khabib. McGregor wasn’t there to stick up for Artem Lobov; he was there to make a scene.”
What’s next for Conor McGregor?
Conor McGregor
“If he’s just driven by fame and money, then the sooner he’s out of the public eye, the better," says Dan. “I think we’ll get to see him fight in the next six to 12 months, but the financial implications of this escapade in Brooklyn will be much more bigger."
Nick adds: “It will be no more than a slap on the wrist - a fine, or maybe a six month suspension from the sport. I’d be surprised if he’s not looking at five or six different lawsuits. I think we’re probably looking at a couple of hundred thousand dollars in terms of fines and court cases, but all it has done is build his return to the octagon even more.”
It has been rumoured for some time now that the UFC may host its first event in Russia, and Nick is hopeful that McGregor will feature in that card.
“As an MMA fan, I hope he fights Khabib next, because UFC Russia would be phenomenal. It has to happen in the next six months. There would absolutely be no bigger fight. I think it would sell out their Olympic Stadium.”
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Khabib Nurmagomedov responds to rival Conor McGregor after bus attack
