Conor McGregor was removed from popular online game Hitman after he was found liable for sexual assault by a jury in a civil case.
McGregor, who plans to appeal the decision, will have to pay more than $262,000 (€250,000) to the victim. Nikita Hand filed a civil suit in early 2021 alleging that while intoxicated, McGregor and another man, James Lawrence, had sex with her without her consent in 2018. Criminal charges were not pursued.
IO Interactive, the developer of the Hitman game, reacted promptly after the verdict, announcing that it was removing the former UFC champion from the game.
"In light of the recent court ruling regarding Conor McGregor, IO Interactive has made the decision to cease its collaboration with the athlete, effective immediately," the company wrote on X. "We take this matter very seriously and cannot ignore its implications. Consequently, we will begin removing all content featuring Mr. McGregor from our storefronts starting today."
McGregor took to his social media the day following the verdict and apologized to his wife.
"People want to hear from me, I needed time. I know I made mistakes. Six years ago, I should have never responded to her outreaches. I should have shut the party down. I should never have stepped out on the woman I love the most in the world," McGregor wrote.
The fighter continued, "That's all on me. As much as I regret it, everything that happened that night was consensual and all the witnesses present swore to that under oath."
McGregor added that he has instructed his legal team to appeal the decision and that he must "move forward," not back.
"I am beyond grateful to my family, friends and supporters all over the world who have stayed by my side. That's it. No more. Getting back to the gym- the fight game awaits!"
McGregor is part of a paid, downloadable content pack in which gamers take on a mission to assassinate him before or while he is engaging in a fight to the death against an eccentric billionaire on an island-castle surrounded by an elite secret society.
In recent years, McGregor has had many run-ins with law enforcement across the world. He has engaged in shattering bus windows and allegedly attacked fans in separate incidents in both Florida and Ireland.
He was accused of assaulting an Italian musician in Rome and a woman on his yacht in Spain. Other allegations of sexual assault have been dropped against the fighter, as well.
While it will be interesting to see if the IO Interactive team reinstates McGregor should the verdict be overturned, there will always be questions as to whether or not he should have been included in the game at all if his out-of-the-Octagon troubles were the reason for taking him out.
McGregor has another court battle on the horizon. His former training partner Artem Lobov is suing him over the creation of his popular whiskey Proper Twelve, saying the liquor brand was originally his idea, the Irish Star reported.
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