UFC boss Dana White reacts to Conor McGregor turning up at rival promotion and blames it on ‘pounding’ his whiskey
DANA WHITE put Conor McGregor’s shock appearance at Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship down to boozing on Proper 12.
McGregor was a surprise ringside guest at BKFC’s pay-per-view event, where ex-opponents Eddie Alvarez, 39, and Chad Mendes, 37, fought.
And in the main event ex-UFC welterweight Mike Perry, 31, stopped former middleweight champion Luke Rockhold, 38.
Perry then invited McGregor – who was wearing a BKFC belt – into the ring and the pair had a face-off.
It came shortly after the Irishman was captured swigging his Proper 12 whiskey from the bottle at ringside.
So UFC president White has a pretty good idea of how his biggest star ended up in a rival promotion’s ring.
He told Barstool Sports: “I think Conor went out and was having fun and got caught up in the moment.
“The dude called him into the ring. You know, he did it. I also saw him pounding a bottle of Proper 12. I’m sure that had something to do with it, too.
“Listen, man. At the end of the day, Conor has done a lot here. He’s made a lot of money. The guy is out having fun and it’s all good.”
Asked if he took issue with the incident, White responded: “Not at all. Not even a little bit.”
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Perry has called McGregor out to a bare-knuckle bout, but the UFC would need to give it special permission.
They did so in 2017 when the former two-weight champion faced boxing legend Floyd Mayweather, 46.
But White and the UFC have been uninterested in repeating the exemption.
Even though McGregor opened the door to the Perry fight after his scheduled UFC return against Michael Chandler, 36, set for this year.
He told Inside Fighting: “Why not? I’ve got a couple of fights lined up. I’ve got the Chandler fight, so that’s what I’m focused on.”