Conor McGregor has broken his silence following a court decision that ordered him to pay £200,000 in damages after being found to have assaulted accuser Nikita Hand.

A jury of eight men and four women came to the decision on Friday, after McGregor and associate James Lawrence were sued over an alleged sexual assault, said to have happened after a night out in December 2018.

The pair denied all wrongdoing, with McGregor told to pay damages, while Lawrence was found not to have assaulted Hand by the jury.

McGregor didn't offer any comment as he left the court in Dublin but has since taken to social media to share his opinion on the decision.

Posting on X (formerly known as Twitter), the MMA star told his 10.6million followers: "I will be appealing today's decision. The judge's instruction and the modest award given was for assault, not for aggravated or exemplary damages.

"I am disappointed that the jury did not hear all the evidence that the DPP reviewed. I am with my family now, focused on my future. Thank you to all my support worldwide."

Hand, who did speak to the media after Friday's verdict was given, said: "I am overwhelmed by the support I have received from everybody.

"I want to thank my legal team and my three barristers, they have been amazing from start to finish. I want to thank the justice, the jury and all the witnesses.

"I want to thank the doctors, nurses and everyone at the sexual assault unit at the Rotunda assault unit, especially my own doctor. I want to thank the rape advice centre, I want to thank all the guards [Irish police] and the ambulance crew."

She continued: "I want to thank the men and woman who have supported me throughout this trial. For every person who reached out to me, a card, email, everything, it has not gone unnoticed. Thank you I really appreciate it so much.

"I want to thank my partner who has been so supportive for the last four years and has held my hand throughout this trial every day. I want to thank my mum and all my family and friends. I want to thank my daughter who I am most grateful for."

Hand told the court how McGregor had restricted her in the hotel bedroom before the assault took place.

She said: “The only thing I could move was my head. I bit him but I can’t remember where. He didn’t like it, so he flipped me around and put his arm around my neck and choked me."

McGregor's lawyer Remy Farrell had told the jury in his closing argument on Tuesday: "The case is not about a hot take, or what colour writers in newspapers say it’s about, it doesn't get reduced to one soundbite, it's about evidence and nothing but the evidence.

"You may not like Mr McGregor. Mr McGregor is somebody who is hard to avoid, who elicits strong views, some people love him, some people very much do not. He's not backwards about coming forwards with his own opinion about various things...

"I'm not asking you to like him, I'm asking you to look at the evidence. I'm not asking you to invite him to Sunday lunch, but to interrogate your own views."