President-elect Donald Trump had a busy Sunday in Washington ahead of his inauguration, which he closed with a rally at the Capital One Arena, attended by around 20,000 spectators, among whom the presence of Irishman Conor McGregor, a UFC legend, was noteworthy.
During his participation as a guest at the event, The Notorious shared an emotional moment with the 13 families of those who died in the Abbey Gate attack in Afghanistan in 2021.
“It’s an honor to be in Washington, DC, to support Donald Trump, the newly elected leader of the free world, and to support the 13 families who lost their loved ones at Abbey Gate,” McGregor said, before adding that he would later attend the pre-inauguration rally: “I’m looking forward to meeting with Vice President JD Vance, Donald Trump Jr. and Charlie Kirk tonight.”
McGregor’s controversial presence at Trump’s event
Attendance at the rally was by free pass, with a limited number of tickets, and Conor McGregor was invited by a coalition of Gold Star family members, who lost loved ones in the aforementioned Abbey Gate attack.
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But on social media, McGregor’s presence was not well received, as he was criticized for being considered a sellout and was even reminded that Donald Trump, who is a fan of UFC, has declared many times that his favorite fighter is Khabib Nurmagomedov.
“Conor isn’t even a US citizen. What is he doing?” and “Dude, you’re Irish, haha,” were some of the comments that drew attention for criticizing McGregor‘s nationality, which they felt had nothing to do with Trump’s event, while others hinted that he attended out of self-interest: “Damn, another sellout,” “He sold his soul” and “We have McGregor on sale before GTA 6.”