Conor McGregor once again proclaimed his innocence after he faced criticism for making his return to action at UFC 329 following a civil lawsuit in Ireland where he was found liable for a sexual assault that allegedly took place back in 2018.
As he prepares to face Max Holloway on Saturday, McGregor was asked about the backlash he’s faced at home after a jury found him liable following a lawsuit filed by a woman named Nikita Hand, who accused the former UFC champion of assaulting her in a Dublin hotel. The jury sided with Hand and awarded her damages totaling £206,000 ($271,742.84).
McGregor appealed the verdict but that was also shut down by the courts.
“I am an innocent man,” McGregor said during UFC 329 media day. “I’ll stand for my innocence until the day I go out. This is still a situation where I fight. There’s a reason it didn’t go where it went and went to a civil trial. It is what it is. It stings deep. I continue to fight.
“I know the truth. I know that lying lips are an abomination to the lord. I know that anything done in darkness will soon come to light. I trust in god that it’s coming. You best believe it’s coming and I look very, very forward to the day.”
Police investigated the claims but criminal charges were never filed against McGregor.
Hand ultimately filed a civil lawsuit instead, and during testimony, she claimed that the UFC superstar “raped and battered” her during the alleged incident.
When he took the stand, McGregor claimed that the acts with Hand were consensual and while the sex was “athletic, physical,” he denied assaulting her.
While McGregor continues to vehemently deny the allegations against him, the 37-year-old fighter admitted on Wednesday that his life spiraled out of control after he achieved so much success inside and outside of combat sports.
In 2016, McGregor became the first ever simultaneous two-division UFC champion and that led to a massive boxing match being booked against Floyd Mayweather where he reportedly earned around $100 million for the fight. That was also when McGregor launched his Proper No. 12 whiskey brand, which he eventually sold alongside his partners in 2021 to Proximo Spirits for a reported $600 million price tag.
“Obviously. 2017, double weight world champion, Floyd Mayweather banked and then I launch an Irish whiskey,” McGregor said. “I didn’t drink heavily at all in that time of my life. I was an athlete at the top of my game. Next thing you know, there’s thousands upon thousands of bottles in my garage.
“[They’d tell me] sell this, Conor. OK, I’d leave my property with two bottles under my arm. That was it. I was caught. That’s it.”
McGregor says in recent years he’s cleaned up his act and devoted himself to faith and family, which put him back on track to resume his fighting career.
“God gave me these lessons, that’s it,” McGregor said. “I was trapped and caught. It is what it is. I trust in God. I trust in my journey and I trust in the truth. If the world is against the truth, then I am against the world. That is where I stand.”
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