Conor McGregor told a crowd of fans at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, on Thursday that he was “half black from the bellybutton down” in response to criticism for racially charged comments he made earlier in the week.
The New York City event was the third of four stops on a tour designed to promote the Irishman’s boxing-rules fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr. in Las Vegas next month.
But the attention McGregor has generated this week has largely been negative. The 29-year-old faced a backlash and was accused of racism after telling Mayweather to “dance for me, boy,” on Tuesday and Wednesday.
In Brooklyn, McGregor reacted to the accusations of racism and told fans that “a lot of media is saying I’m against black people.”
He said: "That's absolutely f------ ridiculous. Do they not know I'm half black?" McGregor said before pointing at his stomach and to his groin. "I'm half-black from the bellybutton down."
"Here's a little present for my beautiful black female fans," McGregor said while thrusting his groin into the air.
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Conor McGregor isn'tracist you guys. He's half black... pic.twitter.com/GrHGXapZkf
— Halal Makar (@EthanGSN) July 14,2017
Conor McGregor isn'tracist you guys. He's half black... pic.twitter.com/GrHGXapZkf
Mayweather described the comments and actions as racist. "This is an event where two fighters are competing against one another but saying a lot of racist things like today toward black women," he said.
"I have two black daughters, a black mother - of course I'm a black man," he added. "He's crossing the line … losing a lot of fans by doing that."
Speaking with journalists after the Brooklyn event, McGregor again denied that he was racist.
"That doesn't sit well with me," he said. "I'm a very multicultured individual, and I don't have any ill feelings toward any - I don't even see colour.
"I just wanted to say something and have a little bit of fun with it. I just wanted to play with it and address it in my own little way. It's stupid, and it's ridiculous is basically what I was getting at."
The final stop on the fighters' press tour is at Wembley Arena in London on Friday.