NY Police Investigate Conor McGregor After Media Day Chaos

Conor McGregor attends his after fight party and his Wynn Nightlife residency debut at the Encore Beach Club at Night at Wynn Las Vegas on Aug. 27, 2017, in Las Vegas. David Becker/Getty Images for Wynn Nightlife

New York police are investigating an incident in which UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor allegedly caused chaos at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center on Thursday by gatecrashing a media event ahead of UFC223 on Saturday, April 7.

McGregor is alleged to have entered the building through a side entrance together with his entourage before trying to attack a van containing Russian lightweight contender Khabib Nurmagomedov and other fighters as they prepared to leave.

New York Police Department spokesman Tarik Sheppard said they were “looking into the incident” but that as yet no arrests or warrants had been issued, Reuters reported.

 Video footage circulated on social media showed McGregor running in a loading area and picking up a trash can.

“Conor went bananas and put a beating on the van that we were in looking for Khabib,” MMA coach Rick Little said, CBS Sports reported. He said that UFC fighter Michael Chiesa was cut during the incident.

“A million security guards had to restrain him. Mike’s cut up now. He’s got marks on him, for sure. I don’t think too serious. Everything happened so fast, it was just like we got jumped,” Little added.

Clips shot from inside the van showed an object hitting and cracking the vehicle’s windshield before the driver reversed away.

“This is the most disgusting thing that has ever happened in the history of the company,” UFC President Dana White told website MMA Junkie.

White claimed that there was a warrant out for McGregor’s arrest, but, according to USA Today, that was an inaccurate statement. “We don’t even have a report (filed) where we could obtain a warrant,” Sheppard told USA Today.

USA Today reported that Chiesa was taken to the hospital, and it’s unclear if he'll continue with his fight against ex-UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis this weekend.

Nurmagomedov is due to face Max Holloway in a showdown for McGregor’s belt, which he won in 2016 but never defended, and White has said the winner of Saturday’s bout will be crowned undisputed champion.

Earlier in the week, Russian Nurmagomedov confronted Artem Lobov, 29, McGregor’s Russian friend, teammate, and sparring partner, in a hotel in New York, an incident which may have provoked the Irish fighter.

White subsequently told reporters at the venue that Lobov would not be allowed to fight Alex Caceres as scheduled on Saturday.

Reuters contributed to this report.

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