Conor McGregor made a rare appearance at Dublin's 3Arena tonight to support teammates Lee Hammond and Sinead Kavangh at Bellator 275.
The Irish duo were competing in the fight night which was headlined by Gegard Mousasi's middleweight title defence against Austin Vanderford, with McGregor stepping out uncharacteristically early to support Hammond in the opening fight of the night.
The former amateur ace went 2-0 with his dominant first round TKO over Jamie Hay, and McGregor made his way into the cage to celebrate; his first time entering the enclosure since his leg break last year.
He was also seen shaking hands with Love Island star Josh Denzel, who is involved in the broadcast for the event.
Hammond, a long-time friend of McGregor's, is a huge fan favourite at the Dublin venue and was received well by the early attendees at the event.
And McGregor heaped praise on the 25-year-old, telling Mirror Fighting after the bout that his performance was "flawless, like I knew it would be".
"It means so much to me that Conor would come," Hammond told Mirror Fighting after the bout. "He's usually a bit later!
"Conor's been helping me for ten years now and I'm very grateful that he would take time out of his very busy schedule to show up here today."
McGregor hadn't stepped foot in a cage since his loss to Dustin Poirier last summer at UFC 264, where he left in a stretcher after suffering a freak leg injury.
But he was walking around unassisted at this evening's event, where Kavanagh will fight later in an historic all-Irish co-main event.
Hammond said that he offered words of encouragement after the bout, telling him to keep working ahead of his next fight, which is set for three weeks from now.
"He just told me 'congratulations and keep going', like he always does," Hammond added. "He's very encouraging telling me to keep going forward.
"He wants me to reach new heights, that's what he said to me."
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The pair had been in touch before the fight, with McGregor telling his teammate not to allow the rowdy hometown crowd effect him.
McGregor is no stranger to the venue; he gave his famous "not here to take part, here to take over," speech at the same place back in 2014 after beating Diego Brandao.
"Conor gave me some great advice before the fight," Hammond explained. "He told me to use the crowd, but not to let them get me too high.
"I just let it bring me to the right level and I didn't let it take it take over my emotions.
"I think he gets a good buzz any time he's at a fight and I'm very grateful for him showing his support."
McGregor is currently rehabilitating his leg, and is expected to return later this year, although no date has been named and he is still not cleared for full contact sparring.
