​Conor McGregor’s trajectory after the 2017 Floyd Mayweather boxing spectacle has been a mix of sensational hype and legal headaches, a pattern that has kept him in headlines outside the octagon. The Sporting News previously published a comprehensive timeline detailing the incidents that followed his high-profile clash with Mayweather, culminating in 2024 with sexual assault allegations. As McGregor prepared for a UFC return, observers wondered if his personal life had finally stabilized. Here is that extended timeline of trouble dating from the Khabib Nurmagomedov bus incident through the 2024 allegations, condensed into the most consequential moments reported by The Sporting News.
The trouble began to mount soon after the intense scuffle between McGregor’s camp and Khabib Nurmagomedov’s team at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. After Nurmagomedov’s team riled him up by assaulting McGregor’s training partner Artem Lobov, McGregor led a group of more than a dozen men in an attack on a bus carrying Nurmagomedov and other UFC fighters. At one point, McGregor hurled a steel dolly at the bus window, shattering the glass and injuring several people inside. Eyewitness accounts captured the chaos: “No one knew what was going on. Everyone was, ‘What the heck is this? What are we under attack from?’” UFC fighter Al Iaquinta recalled to ESPN. The incident led to criminal charges for McGregor, who faced three counts of misdemeanor assault and one count of criminal mischief. A plea deal later reduced the case to a misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct. The episode would forever color McGregor’s image, with many calling it “the most disgusting thing that has ever happened in the history of the company” in the context of UFC rivalries.
The fallout from the scuffle extended beyond the bus incident. After a separate post-fight clash with Nurmagomedov on October 6, 2018, McGregor received a six-month suspension from the Nevada State Athletic Commission and a $50,000 fine, underscoring the ongoing consequences of their feud. The crossfire between the two fighters escalated, with Nurmagomedov scaling the cage and directing aggression toward one of McGregor’s training partners, triggering a broader brawl that intensified the rivalry and the scrutiny on McGregor’s behavior.
In a separate incident several years later, McGregor again found himself at the center of legal issues when a dispute in Miami captured headlines. In 2019, he was arrested and charged with robbery and criminal mischief for allegedly smashing a fan’s phone after the person attempted to capture video or photos of him. Video footage depicted a tense moment as the fan tried to document McGregor, only to have his phone grabbed and stomped by the fighter. The charges were resolved when the man dropped them two months later, but the incident contributed to a broader perception of McGregor’s willingness to engage in volatile confrontations when confronted by fans.
McGregor’s troublesome year continued in August 2019, with another legal matter arising in Dublin. He was charged for punching a man inside a pub in the city center. McGregor ultimately pleaded guilty to assault and received only a fine for the incident, a resolution that drew mixed reactions from fans and commentators who weighed his growing boisterous public persona against his responsibilities as a high-profile athlete and role model. In a twist tied to this incident, McGregor later purchased the pub where the altercation occurred, tying his business ventures to his image in a way that some critics felt was an attempt to rehabilitate his public persona through ownership and stewardship.
The legal turbulence extended beyond the English-speaking world when McGregor was arrested in France, on the island of Corsica, in September 2020, amid an allegation of sexual assault and indecent exposure. He was released after two days without any charges being filed. The quick resolution left the public with lingering questions about the circumstances and whether the matter would resurface.
As the narrative moved toward 2024, new and serious allegations regarding sexual assault emerged, and The Sporting News’ coverage underscored the ongoing scrutiny facing McGregor as he attempted to return to competition. The persistent headlines around his personal life contrasted sharply with his in-ring achievements and his ongoing comeback efforts, prompting fans and observers to reassess the broader implications of his off-mat conduct on his legacy.
This timeline, anchored by the Khabib Nurmagomedov incident and extending through the 2024 sexual assault case, reflects a period when McGregor’s public life was as much defined by legal and personal controversies as by his sports achievements. The Sporting News has documented these events as a warning of how off-field conduct can shape the public’s perception of a fighter’s career, even when success returns to the octagon. If you want to read more from The Sporting News, you can mark them as a preferred source for this topic.