Conor McGregor slugged whiskey, mocked his opponent's accent, and accused him of disrespecting Vladimir Putin during a wild UFC 229 press conference
- Conor McGregor slugged whiskey, mocked his opponent's accent, and asked if he was disrespecting Vladimir Putin during a wild press conference.
- The media event, held in New York City on Thursday, precedes a highly-anticipated UFC 229 fight night in Las Vegas on October 6.
- That is the date when McGregor and UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov can finally trade blows.
Conor McGregor slugged measures of his own branded whiskey and appeared to mock his opponent's accent during a wild UFC 229 press conference.
McGregor faced off with defending UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov in New York City on Thursday, ahead of their anticipated ruckus at UFC 229 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on October 6.
The last time they were this close was when McGregor was seen on video throwing guard rails at a bus carrying UFC fighters - an extraordinary attack that hospitalised two athletes.
UFC boss Dana White later claimed McGregor was motivated to confront Nurmagomedov, who had slapped McGregor's close friend Artem Lobov and was on the bus at the time of the attack.
McGregor and Nurmagomedov did not fight that night, but they now have the chance to settle their differences when they punch, elbow, and choke each other next month.
The backstory is chaotic enough, but the promotion for October's showdown was just as orderless as a frenzied McGregor rarely let Nurmagomedov speak.
When Nurmagomedov was able to talk, uninterrupted by McGregor, his comments were picked apart. At one point in the press conference, Nurmagomedov was asked about McGregor's relationship with Russia president Vladimir Putin. The two men famously posed for a photograph at the 2018 FIFA World Cup final - a 4-2 victory for France against Croatia at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow on July 15.
Nurmagomedov said he did not like getting photographs with people. McGregor snapped: "Are you disrespecting your president, Vladimir Putin? Then what do you mean by that? Explain what you mean. Fake rat."
It was not the only time McGregor referenced Putin, as the Irishman also touched on Nurmagomedov's relationship with Ziyavudin Magomedov, a billionaire businessman who was arrested on embezzlement charges and for acting as part of an organised crime group earlier this year. Nurmagomedov notably vouched for Magomedov's release.
"Vladimir Putin locked him up for embezzling money from the Russian people," McGregor said, before implying that Magomedov invested money into Nurmagomedov's gym and allowed him to "gain this false power."
McGregor said: "Then s--- hit the fan with your man, he gets locked up, and now there's not a bean left, and here I am to put the nail in the coffin."
He added: "You took money from Magomedov. Now what? Putin locked him up! Say something to Putin about locking Magomedov up. Say something! Ask him to release him."
McGregor slugged measures of his own whiskey at various points in the conference, offering a shot to UFC boss Dana White, and even to Nurmagomedov, who refused, saying he did not drink.
McGregor launched the brand, named Proper Twelve, earlier this week, retailing at $24.99 per bottle. The whiskey was first teased under the label "Notorious" after McGregor's tenth round loss to Floyd Mayweather in a boxing rules bout last year.
McGregor also mimicked his opponent's accent on multiple occasions. At one point, McGregor said "I stay on bus" in broken English - a reference to Nurmagomedov's refusal to get off the UFC team bus during the infamous attack earlier in the year.
Later he tried to silence Nurmagomedov by simply saying: "Mu-mu-mu-mu."
McGregor may have been the louder of the two fighters at the press conference but Nurmagomedov will get the chance to do his talking in the cage as the fight is scheduled to take place in just two weeks' time.
It will be McGregor's first UFC fight in almost two years.