Conor McGregor bus incident was good for his career, argues Chael Sonnen - "Don't get weird and litigious"
Back in 2018, Conor McGregor infamously threw a dolly at a bus carrying his arch-rival Khabib Nurmagomedov and other fighters to the hotel ahead of UFC 223. The dolly ended up smashing through the window of the bus, leaving some fighters injured and others in shock.
The view from inside the bus of Conor McGregor throwing a dolly and injuring Michael Chiesa. https://t.co/vm1thw0rOV
The former two-division champion was later arrested following the incident and agreed to a plea deal that helped him avoid jail time. Looking back at the incident four years later, Chael Sonnen feels it only benefitted McGregor's career.
Although he doesn't condone the Irishman's behavior on the night, Sonnen feels that the incident adds to McGregor's 'Notorious' persona.
According to 'The American Gangster', the incident is one of the most memorable moments, good or bad, in Conor McGregor's career. He also pointed out the UFC's usage of clips from the incident to promote the Irishman's grudge match with Nurmagomedov at UFC 229.
In a recently shared video on his YouTube channel, Chael Sonnen said:
"Was that good for Conor's career and don't get weird and litigious on me here, I understand it was a bad action, I understand it was handled correctly... I get all of that, I'm asking a different question. The story of Conor McGregor, is it better with that incident, with that clip that goes around with the build-up that led into that fight? It's a hard question largely because the answer is yes, and you don't want to celebrate something like that. That's not my message, let that go, let's just have fun and speak candidly. When I do think of top five Conor moments ever, that one comes to mind for sure."
Watch the video below:
Dana White reveals potential timeline for Conor McGregor's UFC return
Conor McGregor is back in training, preparing to make a return to the octagon later this year. He has been out of action since July last year after suffering a leg injury during his trilogy fight with Dustin Poirier at UFC 264.
The Irishman seems to be closing in on a full recovery and has already started doing some padwork in the gym, evident from some recent videos he shared.
UFC president Dana White has revealed a potential timeline for McGregor's return to action. According to him, the 33-year-old could be back inside the octagon sometime in early fall if his recovery goes as expected. During a recent interaction with SunSport, White said:
"We're looking at early fall, if everything goes right. If his leg heals right and he gets the clearance to really start training, then possibly early fall."