MMA superstar Conor McGregor in spotlight at White House
MMA superstar Conor McGregor in spotlight at White House
Conor McGregor, the Irish mixed martial arts fighter accused of sexual assault in multiple countries including the United States, lashed out at illegal immigration Monday during a St. Patrick's Day visit to Washington to meet President Donald Trump.
"The illegal immigration racket is running ravage on the country," McGregor said of his homeland Ireland, speaking in the White House briefing room alongside the president's press secretary Karoline Leavitt.
Dressed in a green-tinted business suit to mark St. Patrick's Day, McGregor was at the White House by Trump's invitation, where he participated in an impromptu Q&A session with reporters.
"There are rural towns in Ireland that have been overrun in one swoop," he said, adding: "Ireland is at the cusp of potentially losing its Irishness."
The 36-year-old former Ultimate Fighting Championship star said he is "here to raise the issue and highlight it," and that he would be "listening" to Trump on immigration one of the president's main focus areas as he seeks to ramp up deportations of people in the United States without proper documentation.
Mixed martial arts is a sport that combines various combat techniques.
Despite its often extreme violence, MMA has been gaining in popularity, particularly as Trump campaigned in 2024 with stars and promoters of the UFC series that is popular with many male voters.
Last week during a visit to Washington by Ireland's prime minister, the 78-year-old Trump said he was an admirer of McGregor.
Nicknamed "The Notorious," McGregor is one the biggest stars in UFC, the most famous and lucrative MMA league. He is known for his aggressive, provocative temperament and noted for occasional anti-immigration outbursts.
In November 2024 the fighter was ordered by an Irish court to pay damages to a woman who claimed that McGregor "brutally raped and battered" her in a hotel in south Dublin in 2018. McGregor claimed they had consensual sex.
More recently, the Irishman was sued in a US court in January, accused of sexual assault at an NBA game in Miami in 2023.
At the end of that year, the champion fighter and entrepreneur had spoken on social media about a potential presidential bid in Ireland.
At the time he received the backing of billionaire Tesla boss Elon Musk, who is now one of Trump's most powerful advisors.
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