Conor McGregor to be gifted marble sculpture of himself worth $97k

The sculpture of Conor McGregor. Photo / Daily Mail

Conor McGregor will receive a £50,000 (NZ$97,200) hyperrealistic sculpture of himself from celebrated artist Aspencrow in mark of his 30th birthday this weekend.

The sculpture, which depicts McGregor bursting out of a block of marble, is part of an edition of three unique variations of the piece and will be unveiled at Mayfair's JD Malat Gallery on July 14.

The life-sized piece, titled ATLAS, will be gifted to the UFC star to commemorate his milestone birthday.

It took the Birmingham-based artist five months to meticulously handcraft the 100kg sculpture from photographs alone, using top quality platinum silicone and marble powder, with eyes made from eerily realistic, UVresistant Polyurethane Resin and McGregor's trademark crop cut and beard crafted from real hair.

Aspencrow - also known as Edgar Askelovic - said: "It is an honour that Conor has accepted this as a gift from me. He is a phenomenon of our time - not just a smart athlete, but also a visionary.

"To create the piece, I looked back to antiquity, when athletes were immortalised in sculptures as gods. And I combined some details from a Michelangelo statue with modern day graffiti to capture the present day's warrior sensibilities.

"People of our generation grew up on graffiti and hooliganism, so I've displayed part of his tattoos on his back in graffiti.

"I share his belief: 'Talent does not exist'. This is hard work and obsession."

The former two-weight champion McGregor has still not fought in the octagon since November 2016, but speculation of him returning against lightweight rival Khabib Nurmagomedov is intensifying.

The Irishman is currently training and has been stepping up his regime in preparation of an expected return to UFC later this year.

The other two identical sculptures of McGregor will be sold by JD Malat Gallery, where it will be on view to the public as part of their summer exhibition from July 14 until September 30.