Kiwis are impressed at Conor McGregor’s solid attempt at a pukana alongside NZ-born Māori fighter Haze ‘The Huntsman’ Hepi.
At the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship in Spain, which McGregor partly owns, he was gifted a korowai by Hepi.
“Māori to the world,” the Aussie-based Māori fighter posted on Instagram. “Presented a taonga from our culture to @thenotoriousmma.”
The korowai, made by Kiwi Girl CreationZ, was a beauty. Sarah, the clever creative behind the Aussie-based business, crafts stunning contemporary korowai and other Kiwi-inspired pieces.
McGregor was a total legend, graciously accepting the taonga and proudly wearing it.
The pair then posed for a pic where McGregor made a “hearty” effort at pulling a pukana, and fair play to him, it didn’t go unnoticed.
Fans were quick to give him props, with one commenting: “He's actually got a solid pukana 😂😝.” Another said: “Hearty! The wairua from the man.”
“No way u got the Mac to do a pukana😂🔥,” a third was blown away.
It seems there might be more than just a friendly photo op in the works between McGregor and Hepi. ‘The Huntsman’ hinted in his caption: “WE’RE NOT JUST HERE TO TAKE PART, WE’RE HERE TO TAKE OVER.”
He even threw in the Irish and Tino Rangatiratanga flag colours.
Prior to heading to Spain for the BKFC, Hepi also shared something “massive” is on its way.
“Off to Spain on Wednesday for the @bareknucklefc event in Marbella. Massive announcements coming soon. In the meantime, we mahi,” he wrote.
We’re not sure what’s coming, but you can bet we’ll be watching closely to see what these two powerhouses are brewing.
