Conor McGregor fined $150,000 for UFC 202 bottle-throwing incident

UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor was hit with a $150,000 fine by the Nevada Athletic Commission for his role in a bottle-throwing incident that abruptly ended the UFC 202 pre-fight media event in Las Vegas on Aug. 17.

The commission voted unanimously to levy the Irishman with the fine – which equates to five percent of his disclosed $3 million purse earned against Nate Diaz – while also tacking on 50 hours of community service and requiring McGregor to participate in an anti-bullying campaign.

The punishment may seem a bit harsher than originally thought. The Nevada Attorney General initially suggested a fine of $25,000 with 25 days of community service and five hours of media training. However, the commission appeared to want a stiff penalty that would serve as a warning to anybody else that wants to engage in a degree of unsportsmanlike conduct as McGregor did.

The incident took place at the David Copperfield Theater inside of the MGM Grand after McGregor drew the ire of Diaz when he arrived considerably late for the scheduled press conference. Diaz stormed out and shouted expletives at McGregor on his way out. One thing led to another and the two sides were throwing bottles at one another, with McGregor eventually launching a can of Monster Energy from the dais.

The Irishman testified by telephone and admitted to his part in the altercation but suggested he was only responding after he saw a bottle from Diaz’s party heading toward a teammate.

“I acted wrong, and all I will say is I’m sorry for this,” McGregor said. “This was a high-stakes fight for me.”

McGregor’s attorney argued against a possible suspension that would prevent McGregor from facing Eddie Alvarez for the lightweight title in the main event of UFC 205. Instead, the commission debated what percentage of McGregor’s purse he would be fined for. Commissioners Pat Lundvall and Michon Martin suggested a fine of 10 percent, which would have been $300,000. Fortunately, for McGregor, commissioners Francisco Aguilar and Anthony Marnell didn’t feel comfortable levying such a hefty fine for throwing a water bottle and settled on five percent.

A hearing for Nate Diaz regarding his role in the altercation has been postponed to a later date.