President Donald Trump, a UFC enthusiast, praised Irish fighter Conor McGregor for his tattoos and fighting prowess during a meeting with Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin, while also previously expressing admiration for McGregor’s rival, Khabib Nurmagomedov.
President Donald Trump is a big fan of the UFC. His enthusiasm for the sport even comes up during meetings with international leaders.
On Wednesday, Trump met with Ireland’s Taoiseach, Micheál Martin, as part of his annual St. Patrick’s Day events. They discussed trade agreements and tariffs, hot topics since Trump’s second term began in January. Yet, somehow, the UFC always seems to pop into the conversation.
While chatting with reporters, Trump didn’t miss a beat in praising Conor McGregor, the former two-division UFC champion. He expressed his admiration for Irish fighters in general.
“I do happen to like your fighter,” Trump remarked. “He’s got the best tattoos I’ve ever seen.” Then he added, “Conor’s great, right? But you have a lot of great Irish fighters actually. Great fighters.”
“I don’t know what that is but Ireland’s always had a lot of really good fighters,” he mused. “You know why? Because they’re tough people. They’re smart people and they’re passionate people.”
Donald Trump says he’s a fan of Conor McGregor:
“He’s got the best tattoos I’ve ever seen. Conor’s great…
Ireland’s always had a lot of good fighters. You know why, because they’re tough people.”
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS)
Interestingly, McGregor has been a longtime supporter of Trump. He even attended Trump’s inauguration earlier this year in Washington D.C. Upon arriving in the U.S., McGregor celebrated by saying he was going to watch Trump “become double champ” after winning both the 2016 and 2024 elections.
Despite Trump’s praise for McGregor on Wednesday, he’s also shown support for one of McGregor’s fiercest rivals.
In the leadup to last November’s election, Trump called Khabib Nurmagomedov his “favorite fighter.” This came up while discussing plans to address the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.
McGregor wasn’t thrilled with that choice, calling it “abysmal.” However, he didn’t hold grudges long; he accepted an invitation to attend Trump’s inauguration alongside UFC CEO Dana White, heavyweight champ Jon Jones, and other combat sports fans like Jake Paul and Logan Paul.