Referee Marc Goddard has broken his silence over a recent MMA fight at Dublin's 3Arena, in which Conor McGregor stole the headlines.
The Dubliner entered the cage as the first round of Charlie Ward and John Redmond's encounter came to a close.
A left hand from Ward grounded his opponent moments before the end of the round was sounded. You can see McGregor's antics in the video below, which entered the top 10 of Bellator's most watched Youtube clips since being uploaded 4 days ago:
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Goddard revealed that while McGregor was being removed from the cage he issued threats including “seeing me in Birmingham” [my hometown] Conor McGregor’s threats are of no concern to me. He then circled outside of the cage and jumped back up on the cage and when a commission official tried to get him down he struck out to him. The video presents all the evidence that is needed."
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The referee added "I have enjoyed a very good and enjoyable relationship over many, many years with fighters and members of SBGi who have always represented themselves and the team with class and respect. I would like to thank all the team who approached and messaged me directly. I wish you all continued success and good fortune."
The official says he doesn't want any further action to be taken against the UFC Lightweight champion, but hopes the situation will be reviewed and learned from.
He closed by reaffirming his respect for the notorious one "I have known, witnessed and refereed Conor on many previous occasions over the years and watched, even in support of his meteoric rise, speaking publically to commend him and offer an insight when others had turned against him. I have known Conor before he was the mega star that he is now, long before he amassed his fame and fortune – the difference being I respected him the same and treated him no different back then."
