Irish fighter Conor McGregor has been charged with assault and criminal mischief following a backstage disturbance at a UFC event in New York.
Police had wanted to question McGregor after footage emerged online appearing to show him throw a “hand truck” at a bus taking rival fighters away from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
A spokesman for the New York Police Department confirmed the Irishman had turned himself in and had been charged with three counts of assault and one of criminal mischief.
The spokesman added that Cian Cowley (25), also a mixed martial arts fighter, from Hyde Park, Dalkey, Dublin, had been charged with assault.
He said both men would appear in court later on Friday.
On the day the 29-year-old was stripped of his UFC lightweight title, McGregor and an entourage were seen at a press conference for Saturday’s UFC 223 event, headlined by Khabib Nurmagomedov and Max Holloway.
Footage then emerged on the Instagram account of undercard fighter Felice Herrig which was captioned ‘Conor McGregor causing trouble’.
Police earlier said one person had been injured when a bus window was smashed, with the chaotic scenes leading to three fights being cancelled this weekend.
The ugly scenes were condemned by UFC president Dana White, a long-time advocate of McGregor’s, who called the incident “one of the most disgusting things that’s happened in the history of the company.”
The scenes came at the end of what had already been a rough day for McGregor as he lost his lightweight title.
White revealed at a press conference that McGregor’s 155lb championship will be up for grabs this weekend, with the Irishman having not fought in the Octagon since winning his belt in November 2016.
McGregor initially delivered a brief and to-the-point reaction, saying: “You’s’ll strip me of nothing you’s do nothing c****”.
McGregor, who was beaten in a boxing match by Floyd Mayweather Jr in August 2017, the last time he fought, had been expected to have his crown taken from him for some time.
Number one Tony Ferguson, who held the interim title in his absence, has been booked to fight Nurmagomedov on four occasions, but the bout is yet to take place.
Nurmagomedov will now face featherweight champion Holloway, with the winner claiming McGregor’s crown and the interim belt becoming null and void when a new champion is decided.
