The UFC is “incredibly” disappointed with lightweight fighter Conor McGregor said Lawrence Epstein, COO of the sporting body.
“We’ve come so far in legitimizing the sport and growing our business,” the exec told Cheddar in an in interview Friday. “[His behavior] is just not representative of who we are.”
McGregor was arrested Thursday for an altercation in Brooklyn where he attacked a bus full of fellow UFC fighters, injuring two of them.
“The first thing that’s got to happen is a criminal investigation,” Epstein said. Once that is over, the UFC will decide what to do internally and the option of kicking the fighter out of the UFC is not off the table, he said.
McGregor is known for his flamboyant and provocative antics. For example, he swiped Floyd Mayweather Jr. with racist and demeaning slurs ahead of their highly anticipated UFC-boxing crossover match last year.
The league, which celebrated its 25th anniversary Friday, hosts UFC 223 Saturday at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
Since its inception, it’s [evolved](https://cheddar.com/videos/how-the-ufc-has-changed-over-its-25-year-history) from being a “very spectacle-oriented, niche, U.S.-centric sport to...a truly global brand,” said Epstein.
He added that the body has worked very hard at making it a safe and regulated space with no tolerance for fighters like McGregor.
For the full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/cheddar-steps-into-the-octagon-with-ufc).
The blockchain has made its way into a slew of industries. Next at bat ー the sports world. The Los Angeles Dodgers are moving away from traditional promotions and have begun using crypto tokens to give away digital bobbleheads to fans. Ralph Esquibel, VP of information technology for the team, said this is the first giveaway of its kind and could lead to more experiments with cryptocurrencies.
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Naz Aletaha, head of esports partnerships for Riot Games, said that the "priceless" experiences with new global sponsor Mastercard will start with the world championships in October, offering premium content and behind the scenes access to the biggest event for esports lovers.
Mastercard, seeing a market opening in the skyrocketing popularity of esports, signed a deal to become first global sponsor for Riot Games' "League of Legends." Raja Rajamannar, chief marketing and communications officer for Mastercard, said the company will become exclusive payment service provider for the game. The deal represents the largest mainstream sponsorship thus far in the esports world.
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As the online gaming world continues to boom, professional sports organizations are working to marry the online and physical sports world. Hugh Weber, president of the New Jersey Devils, said that there is a way for live esports events to be compelling enough to translate to ticket sales.
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Chris Raybon, senior editor at The Action Network, breaks down the best bets for sports fans heading into Week 2 of the NFL Season.
The company's recent growth on the back of a newly invigorated gaming segment is only the beginning, according to president and CEO Bracken Darrell. He said in an interview on Cheddar that esports could become "the biggest sport in the world," and Logitech will be there as its top hardware provider.
If you had any lingering doubts that eSports had gone mainstream, they would have been erased when the North American League of Legends Summer Split took over the Oracle Arena ー home to the defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors. Cheddar was there for the last stop before the World Championships in South Korea next month.
