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Irish Mirror
Irish Mirror
Sport
Harry Davies

Conor McGregor's bus attack on Khabib Nurmagomedov was beginning of his downfall

Conor McGregor was arrested for throwing a trolley through a bus window on this day four years ago - and things have gone from bad to worse for the former two-weight UFC champion since.

In a rivalry which still bubbles at the surface, McGregor's bus attack stemmed from his heated feud with now-retired UFC legend Khabib Nurmagomedov, who was competing at UFC 223 for McGregor's vacated lightweight title against Al Iaquinta, reports The Mirror.

Nurmagomedov had a run-in with McGregor's longtime teammate Artem Lobov during fight week which had McGregor's blood boiling, as the Dubliner jumped on a plane from Dublin and flew into New York.

What happened next saw McGregor arrested and charged by New York police for his actions. Here, we take a look at how things unfolded during that hectic week in the Big Apple - and beyond...

1. The bus attack

The media day for UFC 223 took place on Thursday, April 5 2018, just two days before the fight night. McGregor had just arrived in New York and was let into the Barclays Center by members of his media company, The Mac Life.

McGregor and several members of his entourage charged a bus in the loading dock of the Barclays Center that Nurmagomedov was on. Pounding on the windows and encouraging Nurmagomedov to get off the bus, McGregor was looking for any way to confront the Russian.

Grabbing a steel trolley from the loading bay, McGregor launched it through a window of the bus while one of his teammate also picked up a steel railing and tried to do the same. McGregor almost made things worse for himself by attempting to throw a chair through the window, but a security member stopped him.

McGregor and his crew then ran towards the exit of his building, but little did the UFC star know the police would be looking for him just hours later.

(Irish Daily Mirror)

2. The aftermath

The bus was carrying fighters from the red corner who were competing at UFC 223, including Rose Namajunas, Michael Chiesa and Ray Borg. The shattered glass led to several fighters being cut, with blood dripping from the head of Chiesa just moments after the incident.

UFC boss White said of the incident: "They stormed the building, got down to the loading docks where the fighters were getting on buses and started to attack the buses with trash cans, dollies. This is the most disgusting thing that has ever happened in the history of this company."

Chiesa was pulled from his fight with Anthony Pettis at the event because of his injuries whilst particles of glass got into Borg's eyes and his fight with Brandon Moreno was also cancelled. Namajunas was also shaken up by the incident as it reminded her of similar situations that troubled her childhood. She said McGregor later reached out to her with an apology, but she didn't accept it after questioning the sincerity of his message.

McGregor's teammate Lobov wasn't on the bus, but he was pulled from his fight with Alex Caceres at the event for his involvement in the attack.

3. Khabib wins title

Nurmagomedov was due to face Tony Ferguson at UFC 223, but in a freak accident Ferguson tripped over a wire a week before the fight. Max Holloway, who was the 145lb champion at the time, then stepped in to replace Ferguson.

The main event suffered another blow one day out from the fight as Holloway was deemed medically unfit to compete. Former champion Pettis was ready to face Nurmagmedov, but he missed weight by 0.2lbs and was ineligible to win the title.

In came Paul Felder who successfully made 155lbs, but the New York commission refused to allow him to fight for the belt as he was an unranked contender. Iaquinta, who was scheduled to fight Felder, was finally put forward as Nurmagomedov's opponent.

As expected, Nurmagomedov dominated Iaquinta with his superior grappling to win a lopsided unanimous decision and begin his reign as the lightweight champion.

4. McGregor locked up

McGregor and his teammate Cian Cowley were arrested in New York the same night of the incident. McGregor, who turned himself into custody, was charged with three counts of assault and one count of criminal mischief whilst Cowley was charged with one count of assault and one count of criminal mischief.

The UFC star's punishment didn't stop there, as he was also charged with menacing and reckless endangerment. McGregor, who was released on $50,000 bail, eventually pleaded no contest to a count of disorderly conduct. He was ordered to carry out five days of community service and attend anger management classes.

Speaking after the news of his verdict, McGregor said: "I just want to say I am thankful to the DA and the judge for allowing me to move forward. I want to say to my friends, my family, my fans, thank you for the support."

Chiesa filed a lawsuit against McGregor later that year in which he sought $50million in damages. The UFC welterweight said the attack caused him "severe emotional distress, mental trauma and/or bodily harm". The outcome of Chiesa's lawsuit was never made public.

(AFP/Getty Images)

5. McGregor vs Khabib

Four months after the incident, Nurmagomedov made his first title defence against McGregor as the pair fought at UFC 229. There was a heated build-up to the fight as McGregor targeted Nurmagomedov's family, nation, and religion.

Despite being ridiculed by McGregor before the fight, it was Nurmagomedov who had the last laugh. The Russian beat McGregor at his own game by dropping him with a big punch, but it was his suffocating grappling that proved too much for 'Notorious'.

McGregor endured a beatdown from Nurmagomedov before tapping out to a neck crank submission in the fourth round, but what happened next would forever overshadow the fight.

Nurmagomedov climbed over the octagon fence and jumped on McGregor's teammate Dillon Danis, who was cageside. A mass brawl unfolded as McGrgeor was attacked by Nurmagomedov's teammate in the cage and for the first time in history, UFC octagon Bruce Buffer announced the winner with no fighter in the cage.

Both fighters were punished for their actions with Nurmagomedov fined $500,000 and banned for nine months by the Nevada commission whilst McGregor was handed a $50,000 fine and six-month ban. Nurmagomedov never competed in Las Vegas again.

6. Khabib reigns as McGregor fades

Nurmagomedov and McGregor have travelled down contrasting paths since their fight. 'The Eagle' only fought twice after defeating McGregor before retiring from fighting, defending his belt with submission wins over Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje.

The Russian retired as one of the consensus greatest MMA fighters of all time and has since founded Eagle FC, his own MMA promotion. Nurmagomedov also coaches several fighters at American Kickboxing Academy alongside his former coach Javier Mendez.

Other than a 40-second knockout win over Donald Cerrone in 2020, McGregor has not won a fight in six years. He came up short in two fights against Dustin Poirier last year, suffering a broken leg in their trilogy bout last July.

McGregor's bus attack was just the start of his legal issues. He was charged with assault in 2019 for punching an old man in a Dublin pub and last year, got into a scuffle with rapper Machine Gun Kelly at the MTV Video Music Awards.

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