“Smash the windows. Smash the windows!”
Stunned scenes aboard the ‘red corner’ bus in the loading bay of Brooklyn’s Barclays Center (sic) on Thursday night as Conor McGregor leads an assault. A shocked Artem Lobov tries his best to calm matters but to no avail. A whole, sorry mess already way out of hand.
Michael Chiesa bleeds from a gash on his forehead, Karolina Kowalkiewicz looks dazed while Rose Namajunas, her hood up, rocks back and forth with expletives and shocked exclamations ringing out.
“Let’s go, let’s go,” comes the call as McGregor’s entourage weave in and out of parked Fed Ex trucks and make for the exits. ‘The Notorious’ swings around a pole, on his way out, and lets out a whoop. Job done. Chaos delivered.
That is just a taster of the scenes included in the latest episode of UFC’s Embedded series.
Ostensibly a behind-the-scenes look at preparations for big fight weeks, the series had plenty of cameras on hand as McGregor and his colleagues flooded into the loading bay and sent a message to lightweight title challenger Khabib Nurmagomedov, who was aboard the bus with other MMA fighters as they may their way from the UFC 223 media day.
McGregor has since handed himself over to the police in Brooklyn and, after standing in front of a judge along with Cian Cowley on Friday afternoon, will faces charges in court on June 14.
The latest Embedded episode contains four minutes of footage from, and immediately after, the ambush. If the aim was to rattle Nurmagomedov, it was only partly achieved. The Dagestani’s eyes were glazed but he clearly spoke to camera and told McGregor to name a time and place so they could settle their feud.
The whole episode, with the late appearance of UFC 223 main event saviour Al Iaquinta, is definitely worth a watch:
Messy business and more damaging footage that will not do McGregor any favours when he gets back in court. UFC president Dana White’s claim that the Dubliner smashed a window right beside where Namajunas, the women’s straw-weight champion, was sitting leaves a wretched taste in the mouth.
A man or a stunt out of control? Perhaps the truth will out.
