The "chaotic scene" spearheaded by Conor McGregor at Barclays Center following a promotion blitz for UFC 223 "did incalculable damage to McGregor’s reputation, as well as that of the UFC," according to Kevin Iole of YAHOO SPORTS. McGregor turned himself in to N.Y. authorities early Friday morning after he and his entourage on Thursday were caught on video throwing chairs and dollies at a bus outside the arena. McGregor has been "mostly great for the UFC during his nearly five years as part of the promotion," but the incident "undid every bit of goodwill he built up in becoming MMA’s biggest star." He has "put his fight career in peril" and put the UFC "in a position it didn’t want to be in." McGregor is the UFC's "most bankable athlete," but the promotion "has to take disciplinary action against him beyond whatever might happen to him criminally." It would be "hard to argue with the UFC if it chose to never allow him to fight again" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 4/5). FS1’s Kenny Florian called McGregor’s actions a "black eye for the sport." Florian: "It's not a good thing. It's one thing to hype a fight. But when you’re going towards this kind of negativity and people are getting injured and you're ruining people's property and cars and vans, it's too much" ("Speak For Yourself," FS1, 4/5). FS1’s Shannon Sharpe said, “This is a bad look for the UFC, and an even worse look for Conor McGregor. This is thuggish, hooligan, hoodlum behavior. … McGregor is the face of the UFC, but they should send a swift and harsh message" ("Undisputed," FS1, 4/6).
MCGREGOR'S FUTURE UNCERTAIN: UFC President Dana White said he is unsure whether McGregor will fight again for UFC following Thursday's incident. White said, "We were working on a new deal and new plan for him all this week, and then he shows up and this happens.” White: "The big question everybody has been asking me is, ‘Are you firing Conor McGregor?’ This is bigger than ‘is Conor McGregor getting fired?’ There’s so many more moving pieces to this thing" (“Get Up!,” ESPN, 4/6). White on Thursday said, “After this disgusting, despicable move, I think everybody’s relationship with Conor is going to be not so great. ... This is the kind of bad decision you make that turns a lot of people off” (LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL, 4/6). White added, “Do you wanna be in business with Conor McGregor right now? ... I don’t think anybody is gonna want to right now." He added people are "gonna be pretty disgusted" with McGregor (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 4/6).
IN THE NEWS CYCLE: The three network morning shows on Friday all aired reports on McGregor in the first 35 minutes of their broadcasts. NBC’s “Today” teased the news with the headline “Violent Attack!’ while ABC’s “GMA” used the headline “Backstage Brawl” (THE DAILY). NBCSN's Mike Florio brought the incident up on his NFL-focused morning show and said, "We’re talking about it in a spot where we never would have been talking about the UFC” ("PFT," NBCSN, 4/6).
ALL PART OF THE PLAN? White dismissed the idea that the incident was planned, saying, "This is the last stunt on Earth we would pull. This is embarrassing for the sport. ... This is bad. Stunts don't get people thrown in jail and with counts of criminal activity” ("Get Up!, ESPN, 4/6). However, not everyone is convinced. ESPN's Mike Golic said, "You know what's kind of been out of the limelight? The UFC. ... It gives me pause to wonder, is there a little bit of setup in this to bring it back to the light and make McGregor that bad guy again?” (“Golic & Wingo,” ESPN Radio, 4/6). In DC, Bieler & Bonesteel note White’s anger toward McGregor on Thursday "seemed genuine." However, some have "quickly pointed out" that a McGregor fight against Khabib Nurmagomedov "might be more lucrative after Thursday’s drama" (WASHINGTONPOST.com, 4/6). FS1's Skip Bayless said, "This was nothing but Don King memorial fight hype, building to a crescendo -- McGregor-Mayweather 2, which will take place in the octagon under MMA rules. It was beautiful” (“Undisputed,” FS1, 4/6). FS1's Jason McIntyre: "Everything for me coming off this is I can't wait to see what Conor McGregor’s going to do next” ("Speak For Yourself," FS1, 4/5).
