Conor McGregor displays concerning behavior with twitches, difficulty speaking in interview
Odd behavior isn't exactly something new when it comes to Conor McGregor, but the MMA star created some new concerns while promoting his upcoming movie "Road House."
Speaking with Sports Illustrated alongside co-star Jake Gyllenhaal, McGregor fielded questions while repeatedly twitching his shoulders, blinking and appearing to struggle to speak. McGregor is usually as energetic a speaker as there is, but he seemed to be in a different state in the video published Thursday.
One McGregor answer about working with Gyllenhaal:
"Jake's a consummate professional. 75 movies made. You know, I'm blessed (pause) to have entered into a movie alongside him. He was patient with me (pause), he gave me guidance and I just took it (pause). You know, we had a good rapport on set. He has 75 movies made (pause) I have 75 bar fights made, and that's it. We had a good (pause) back and forth."
It's unclear what could have caused this, but it arrives during a pivotal time in McGregor's career both on screen and in the Octagon.
"Road House," which is McGregor's acting debut, released via streaming on Prime Video on Thursday. He is also expected to end a three-year layoff from mixed martial arts with a fight against UFC lightweight Michael Chandler this summer, though that bout has seemingly been in a holding pattern for months.
Even while dormant as a fighter, McGregor remains one of the biggest names in martial arts and unmatched when drawing pay-per-view money. The UFC can only hope McGregor's behavior in that interview isn't the result of a larger issue, but they may already know if something's happening behind the scenes.