Conor McGregor avoids deportation, strikes plea deal
The last time we saw Conor McGregor, he and his team were crashing a UFC Media Day which led to the arrest of the former lightweight and featherweight champion.
McGregor was initially charged with three counts of misdemeanor assault and one count of felony criminal mischief for his role in the scuffle which included him throwing objects at a bus transporting other fighters.
https://twitter.com/barstoolsports/status/981958078148038656
The view from inside the bus of Conor McGregor throwing a dolly and injuring Michael Chiesa. pic.twitter.com/vm1thw0rOV
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) April 7, 2018
But according to TMZ Sports, prosecutors have agreed to reduce that felony charge to a misdemeanor as McGregor moves closer to striking a plea deal. If he was convicted of the felony charge, the Irish born fighter could have been permanently deported from the United States.
McGregor’s plea deal will reportedly keep him out of jail, and he was facing seven years if convicted. TMZ says prosecutors will instead put McGregor on probation as a part of the plea deal.
McGregor appeared in court June 14 to face the charges and is due back in court Thursday. Even if the plea deal does work in his favor, he could still face lawsuits from those who were attacked on the bus.
With McGregor on the verge of escaping serious punishment for his actions, he should be free to return to his day job, which would make UFC president Dana White very happy.
McGregor hasn’t faught in a UFC octagon since November 2016 and White has already penciled in his return to UFC this fall.
Current UFC Lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov would fight McGregor in what ESPN’s Ariel Helwani is calling “the biggest bout in MMA history.”
In addition to his title, Nurmagomedov currently holds the longest undefeated streak in MMA history, winning each of first 26 bouts.
If McGregor’s Thursday court date goes as planned and a plea deal is offered, the two fighters and UFC can move forward with negotiations.
“They’ve just got to get through Conor’s court date first, and that is just purely PR,” former UFC champion Chael Sonnen told Helwani.
“Conor has to do his best to act as though he’s adhering to this court date and that he respects it.”
Since McGregor’s actions at Media Day, he’s done his best to stay in the spotlight while staying out of a ring or octagon.
He attended the Longitude Festival in Ireland for his 30th birthday, was a guest of Vladimir Putin at the World Cup final and announced that he and his partner are expecting their second child.
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