Should Conor McGregor be released by the UFC for his attack on the UFC 223 bus?

So what happened?

Irish UFC sensation Conor McGregor hurled a metal trolley through the window of a bus transporting UFC rival Khabib Nurmagomedov, amongst others including Michael Chiesa and Ray Borg. Both have been hurt and have been pulled from UFC 223.

This incident occurred after a UFC media event in Brooklyn, New York. The 29-year-old MMA sensation later handed himself in to the police.

Co-conspirator Artem Lobov has also been removed from the show after he was accused of participating in the attack. UFC chief Dana White has described it as the worst incident in the history of the organisation.

Author's take

Conor McGregor is easily one of the biggest draws in the history of combat sports, and his drawing power has been exemplified after his boxing match with Floyd Mayweather Jr. According to Forbes, McGregor had made $100 Million in that one bout.

Ever since that boxing super match, McGregor has been more cocky than usual, even though he lost. He went from being the hero of the middle classes, who saw him rise through the ranks with gusto and a never-say-die attitude to the arrogant and brash rich man.

He made more in one boxing match than he would in 10 MMA fights. That has probably made Conor disillusioned with the UFC and he hence hasn't fought since 2016. This led to Dana White stripping him off the UFC Lightweight Championship, which he won at UFC 205 beating Eddie Alvarez.

The former double champion is having a remarkable fall from grace.

Despite Conor being one of the biggest draws MMA has seen and the first ever multi-division champion, the responsible thing to do is for the UFC to cut all ties with him. This is a high profile arrest which sees how irresponsible and erratic McGregor is.

Out of respect for the sport, McGregor should be banished from the octagon. Attacking competitors outside the octagon should be an intolerable offense for which McGregor should pay. His social image will be destroyed anyway, but so should his career as one of the most promising MMA fighters in recent memory.

This horrifying attack was meant for Khabib Nurmagomedov, one of Conor's rumoured future opponents. Khabib had a fight with Conor's good friend Artem Lobov, a video of which was leaked. This attack was to exact revenge against Khabib, but took collateral damage in injuring Michael Chiesa and Ray Borg.

It isn't fair to anyone to be bullied by this man just because he is a big draw. This isn't even the first incident with Conor since his big-money Mayweather loss. Conor was reportedly supposed to fight Tony Ferguson at UFC 219, but due to an incident where he got into a physical confrontation at Bellator 187 with referee Marc Goddard and attacked an official, he was then pulled from the match as a result.

What is important to know is that there is no precedent to release Conor from his contract. UFC is known to stick by their massive draws. This is best exemplified by the 2015 hit-and-run case involving Jon Jones. Jon Jones ran into a pregnant woman's car in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and fled the scene.

UFC stripped him of the Heavyweight title and suspended him indefinitely. However deplorable the situation with Jones was, Conor's is much worse as he hurt fellow fighters and single-handedly ruined a fight card two days before the show.

The UFC is a machine in which Conor McGregor is just another cog. There have been super draws like Brock Lesnar, Jon Jones, Royce Gracie, Georges St. Pierre before him, and there will be massive draws after him.

The responsible thing for UFC to do is to treat McGregor as just another fighter who would've lost his job and reputation for trying to fatally hurt someone outside the octagon. Dana White may be undecided right now but reason must prevail and Conor should be released from the UFC and not allowed back until he gets help.

Call him out for what he has become: a felon.