​LAS VEGAS — Conor McGregor insists he is innocent, regardless of any civil finding of liability for sexual assault by an Irish jury. Speaking at a UFC 329 pre-fight news conference on Wednesday, the 22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC veteran was queried about the legal and moral questions that surround his return to competition. In November 2024, a Dublin civil jury determined that McGregor had nonconsensual sex with a woman, Nikita Hand, in a hotel room in 2018.
“I’m an innocent man, and I’ll stand for my innocence until the day I go out,” McGregor told MMA Junkie and other reporters, sitting at the podium three days before his headlining bout against Max Holloway. “That is still a situation where I fight. There’s a reason why it didn’t go where it went and went to a civil trial. It is what it is. It stings deeply. I continue to fight. I know the truth, and I know that lying lips are an abomination to the Lord. I know anything done in darkness will soon come to light, and I trust in God that it’s coming. You best believe it’s coming. I look very, very forward to the day.”
Hand had accused McGregor of forcing her onto a bed, choking her, and having sex with her against her will. During the trial, Hand’s attorney introduced testimony from medical professionals, including paramedic Eithne Scully, who described the ambulance scene with Hand after the incident as among the worst she had ever witnessed. McGregor was not arrested at the time, and authorities did not pursue criminal charges. Hand subsequently filed a civil suit against McGregor and his associate James Lawrence, though Lawrence was not found liable for sexual assault. After two weeks of testimony, the jury ordered McGregor to pay Hand $260,000. He appealed, but the appeal was denied in July 2025.
Throughout the trial, McGregor acknowledged alcohol and cocaine use around the time of the incident. He has since claimed to have reformed through faith and a renewed relationship with religion. On Wednesday, he linked his past alcohol use to the period when he was away from competition and facing scrutiny. “You know in 2017, I was a double-weight world champion, Floyd Mayweather-banked,” he noted. “Then I launched an Irish whiskey. I didn’t drink heavily, if at all, at that time in my life. I was an athlete at the top of my game. Next thing you know, there are thousands upon thousands of bottles in my garage. Sell this, Conor. OK. I’d leave my property with two bottles under my arm. That was it. I was caught. That’s it. God gave me these lessons. I was trapped and caught. It is what it is. I trust in God. I trust in my journey. I trust in the truth. If the world is against the truth, then I am against the world. That is where I stand.”
Now 37, McGregor has not competed in combat sports since July 2021, when he suffered a broken leg against Dustin Poirier. He is preparing for a return against a familiar foe who has evolved into a rival, a matchup he hopes will also improve his search engine visibility. He framed his personal trials as part of a broader arc toward accountability, resilience, and reinvention, underscoring that he remains focused on the truth as he understands it and on the forthcoming challenges in the cage.