Miriam Lord: Conor McGregor stuns High Court onlookers with evidence about night of alleged sexual assault

How do multimillionaire global sports stars enjoy themselves on a night out?

Court 24 was packed with onlookers, predominantly men, curious to find out.

On Wednesday at the High Court in Dublin, one of them, known the world over as ‘The Notorious’, outlined in graphic detail how he might fill his time when he is “resting”.

When Conor McGregor finished his stint in the witness box, people rose to their feet in a sort of stunned silence. There was a lot to take in.

In a case which has made headlines around the world, the mixed martial arts fighter had just given his opening evidence in a civil action taken against him by 35-year-old Nikita Hand, who has accused him and his companion on the night of sexually assaulting her in a Dublin hotel in December 2018.

At one point in his testimony, he described how it was a “very frightening experience” for him to find himself accused of such an offence.

“Because my life is on the line.”

And at one point in his testimony, as he exactingly recalled their “all happy” and “athletic” and “enthusiastic” sexual encounter, Hand stood up and rushed from the room.

McGregor’s much-anticipated appearance in the witness box happened later than expected.

“I was under the weather last night,” he explained to the judge when he took the stand after the lunchtime break.

“A stomach complaint.”

While waiting to be called, the MMA fighter seemed impatient to get started, rocking back and forth in his back-row seat. He wore a dark navy suit, a white shirt and a dark tie. When his turn came, he took a slug of water from a plastic bottle and walked forward confidently to the witness box.

He took the oath: Bible in one hand, left arm tight by his side, fist clenched beneath a very large watch. He speaks in a low voice which is a mix of staccato and drawl.

Senior counsel Remy Farrell took him through his evidence. How he came to meet Nikita Hand on a very long night at Christmas which stretched across a number of venues in Dublin until a group of four ended up in the penthouse suite of the Beacon Hotel in the middle of the next day.

As he settled into his testimony, the fighter relaxed. Smiling as he talked of some of the sex acts he performed with the complainant. She was a “nice girl”.

He knew her “from around” and said they “moved in the same circles”. She was a colourist in a hair salon in Goatstown and was at its Christmas party on the night.

She sent him a message on Instagram.

“It was just a friendly picture. It was slightly provocative.” She asked him to come out to their party, to come out and pick them up.

[ Court report: Conor McGregor says he had ‘vigorous’ and ‘fully consensual’ sex with woman in Dublin hotelOpens in new window ]

For much of the night, he drove around in the car with his friend James Lawrence. It’s a big car. “I like driving around in the car … just driving around, listening to music.” The car had blacked-out windows and interior covers on the glass.

It sounded like a wild one. In a city-centre nightclub, “lots of friends” joined McGregor and he bought drink for everyone. It became a “ridiculously late night” and “there was a bit of cocaine produced, yeah”.

He referred to Hand and her colleague Danielle Kealey for much of his evidence as the “two ladies”. When he picked them up, he drove them to meet his friend James as he would be “perfect” to balance things out. “See, I had two girls, two boisterous ladies full of energy.”

And the mood, he repeated many times, was fun and playful, happy and “good-hearted”.

He didn’t know how she came to sustain such serious bruising or how her tampon had been wedged so far up her vagina after they had sex it had to be removed by a doctor.

“It wasn’t there when I was there.”

He became irritated after it was put to him that he had pressed Hand’s arm’s so tightly to her body during intercourse, her watch had scratched her breast. He denied telling her that now she knows how it feels to have to “tap out” when pinned to the ground during a fight, thus conceding defeat.

“How anyone could believe that me‚ as private person, would say [something] to highlight my shortcoming, it’s not in my nature … it’s a lie. One of many lies.”

There is more to come on Thursday.