Conor McGregor stormed the cage following Charlie Ward's fight at Bellator 187 at the 3Arena in Dublin on Friday night. His SBG teammate had just KO'd John Redmond towards the end of the first round.
Ward initially reacted with a fighter's instinct - like he had just been taken down - after McGregor had leapt on top of him. It was the UFC lightweight champion's subsequent actions which bolstered the number of headlines regarding last night.
McGregor aggressively went after referee Marc Goddard who had been in charge of the contest between Ward and Redmond. Goddard is one of the most respect officials in MMA. McGregor's actions have earned him some much-deserved criticism. There is also footage showing the Dubliner taking a swipe at a Bellator employee as he sits on top of the cage.
I operate with integrity, belief and values.
I hold MMA in a deep rooted place in my life and have considered myself most fortunate to have done so for so long.
Family first. Everything else second.
Respect.— Marc Goddard (@marcgoddard_uk) November 11, 2017
McGregor and Goddard do have some previous. Last month, as another of McGregor's teammates, this time Artem Lobov, fought at a UFC event in Poland, Goddard asked McGregor to leave the cage area. The 29-year-old had been shouting instructions at Lobov during his fight against Andre Fili.
"Conor was basically acting like a fourth cornerman. Walking around the cage side wherever and whenever he wanted. When Fili took down Artem, Conor was right there. That’s simply not fair and not allowed. I won’t have it. He can’t do as he pleases," Goddard told MMAFighting.com.
That would, partially, explain McGregor's actions and also why he referred to Goddard as a "rat" outside the 3Arena last night.
In footage sent to Balls.ie, McGregor details what he said to Goddard in the cage.
I was trying to say, 'keep going'. It's that same referee, I lost me head with him. I said, 'it's you, ya rat.'
It was a beautiful shot. He's out cold, they all knew he was out cold and he's still trying to call it. 'Oh no, he wasn't out , the fight's not over.' I said, 'it's you, ya rat.'
