If there was ever a sign that UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor had arrived amongst the wealthy of the world, it was his on-stage meeting with billionaire Sir Richard Branson.
Branson started his Virgin Group empire with a music fanzine. Virgin Group boasts more than 60 Virgin branded companies under its control in addition to numerous others.
McGregor was once a plumber’s apprentice, but busted into the public conscience as a fighter. He has gone on to become one of four UFC champions to hold belts in two divisions. His current calling card, however, is landing a boxing blockbuster with Floyd Mayweather, which is speculated to have netted McGregor in the neighborhood of $100 million and spawned numerous offshoot outside-of-the-Octagon businesses.
So it was only a matter of time before the two moguls went nose-to-nose right? Well, yeah.
Both were in attendance at the Pendulum Summit on Wednesday in Dublin, where they squared off, on stage, and shirtless. Yes, you heard that right.
No surprises from McGregor, who loves to tout his athletic build, but Branson? Yeah, billionaire Sir Richard Branson ripped off his shirt to get in McGregor’s face in front of a crowd full of people looking for leadership inspiration.
Luckily, someone was there to capture it on camera!
@richardbranson & @TheNotoriousMMA get their shirts off live onstage!#ConorMcGregor #PendulumSummit #ConorMcgregor pic.twitter.com/VSaz7pQ7Hp
— CONOR MCGREGOR FANS (@KingMcgregorFC) January 10, 2018
