Conor McGregor Should Not Profit from ‘Staged’ Bus Attack, According to Michael Chiesa Lawsuit
Conor McGregor should not be allowed to profit from his attack on a bus full of UFC 223 fighters. At least, he shouldn't according to a lawsuit filed by fellow UFC fighter Michael Chiesa.
McGregor's bus attack occurred on April 5 following the UFC 223 Media Day when he and several others stormed the loading dock of the Barclays Center. McGregor threw an appliance dolly at the window of a bus that held numerous UFC fighters, including Khabib Nurmagomedov, Rose Namajunas, Ray Borg, and Michael Chiesa, amongst others. The window shattered, injuring Borg and Chiesa, necessitating their removal from the UFC 223 fight card.
McGregor has since went on to fight Nurmagomedov at UFC 229 in October, where he lost via a fourth-round submission. The Irishman may have lost the fight, but boasted publicly about the millions of dollars he would make from the fight, which also included a promotional tie-in for his new Irish whiskey, Proper No. 12.
Having lost out on fighting at UFC 223, which might have included an opportunity to step into the main event after Max Holloway was forced to withdraw, Chiesa filed a lawsuit against McGregor in New York State Supreme Court.
As first reported by TMZ, Chiesa's lawsuit, a copy of which was obtained by MMAWeekly.com, cites a New York law called the Son of Sam Law, that bars individuals from profiting from criminal activity and any such profit should be given to the victims of the criminal activity. The lawsuit notes that McGregor profited from the "staged" bus attack by knowingly using it to increase interest in his UFC 229 bout with Nurmagomedov.
"Knowing that a fight with Nurmagomedov was impending in the professional MMA upcoming fight known as UFC 229, McGregor purposely staged and engaged int he criminal acts of April 5, 2018, in a deliberate attempt to create publicity resulting from the havoc, mayhem, and injury that he caused, in this reckless publicity stunt, and promotional effort for this upcoming fight, with the intent to profit from same, with a complete disregard for the injuries he would have caused and did cause to others, including [Chiesa]," the lawsuit stated.
"By his own admission, [McGregor] engaged in the aforementioned conduct and acts with the premeditated intent and purpose of inflicting severe personal injuries and/or murdering Nurmagomedov, and sought to promote his brand and profit from his criminal activity."
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In addition to McGregor, the lawsuit names McGregor Sports and Entertainment LLC, Barclays Center, Brooklyn Events Center LLC, and AEG Management Brooklyn LLC as defendants.
Though Chiesa's UFC 223 bout with Anthony Pettis was cancelled because of injuries he suffered in the incident, Chiesa did eventually fight Pettis at UFC 226 in July. Chiesa missed weight for the lightweight bout, which he lost via second-round submission, and announced that he would not fight at 155 pounds again.
Chiesa is currently scheduled to fight Carlos Condit in a welterweight bout on Dec. 29 at UFC 232 in Las Vegas.
