Conor McGregor begins appeal against civil rape case finding

The Republic of Ireland’s Court of Appeal was told on Tuesday morning that McGregor had withdrawn an application to have new evidence entered at the appeal.

The proposed evidence was from a couple, Samantha O’Reilly and Steven Cummins, who are former neighbours of Nikita Hand.

A previous preliminary hearing was told that they claimed to have witnessed a row between Ms Hand and her former partner Stephen Redmond in December 2018.

The court heard McGregor believed the new evidence suggested that bruising on Nikita Hand’s body could have been caused by her former partner.

In an affidavit, Ms Hand had described the allegations are untrue and lies.

He said she had responded to the suggested new evidence by saying it was “all lies” and that had now been conceded.

He also said McGregor should be referred for “subornation of perjury”, meaning inducing people to commit perjury.

The barrister said an affidavit had been sworn calling Ms Hand and her then partner a liar.

McGregor has also abandoned an application to introduce new evidence from the former state pathologist for Northern Ireland Prof Jack Crane.

The remainder of the appeal, before three Appeal Court judges, is now underway.

Ms Hand is at the hearing along with family and friends.