Will UFC's Conor McGregor throw hat in the ring for €6.35m Ballinacurra Cork retreat?
Moneybags? Conor McGregor is investing in hospitality ventures such as a Dublin pub: his name has been linked to Kinsale's Ballinacurra House, said to be ideal as a private base for high-end sports performance training Photo by Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile
GOOD national and international interest is being shown in the sale of Ballinacurra House and estate near Kinsale which carries a €6.35 million price guide – but reports locally and in Dublin that fighter and businessman Conor McGregor has thrown his hat in the ring have been officially dismissed by the selling agents.
The high-end hospitality venue hit the market in spring, with agents Knight Frank, in the teeth of a global pandemic, and has since returned to trading this summer as an exclusive, and uber-private estate.
Since going to the open market, there have been over a dozen inquiries, but physical viewings from interested parties most notably in the UK and the US have been hit by travel restrictions due to the global pandemic.
The span of interest in the estate on 28 acres and with over 18,000 sq ft of property totalling 25 bedrooms in a mix of buildings ranges from reverting to private use, as a corporate hybrid working environment from a firm in the international finance sector and as a high performance training base for elite professional athletes.
It’s known that top sports promoters and financial advisors to the likes of Ireland’s Katie Taylor and Conor McGregor have shown an interest in Ballinacurra House and are familiar with the millieu and allure of the estate within a few miles of the Old Head of Kinsale.
Its vendors Des and Lisa McGahan have long-term connections with the sports world and the likes of Barry and Eddie Hearn from their previous international careers in the sector, including TV cash-spinning sport and events such as darts, snooker and boxing.
Super-wealthy former UFC fighter Conor McGregor has been previously linked to low-key visits to Kinsale, and has added further to his reported wealth with sale of a significant share of his Proper No 12 whiskey brand, to US-based Proximo Spirits for a reported $600 million. Despite recent fight losses, Forbes ranked him the world’s highest paid athlete for 2021, earning a reported $180 million.
Among a broad range of business interests, from whiskey to fashion and endorsements, Conor McGregor has invested in the hospitality sector, buying a number Dublin pubs, including the one where he punched an older customer, called Black Forge and which is due to open on July 26 once Covid-19 restrictions on the bar and restaurant sectors lift.
Ballinacurra House’s selling agent, Guy Craigie of Knight Frank, this week dismissed reports McGregor buying in Kinsale as unfounded, and added that reports of his purchasing significant Irish properties wasn’t uncommon, and other recent media reports show another of Ireland’s top sport earners, boxer Katie Taylor, recently buying three investment properties for €750,000.
Separately, market sources indicate the arrival of a period Kinsale waterfront property used for Airbnb-style lets in the €2-3 million price bracket in coming weeks, while a luxury home on 28 acres at Dromderrig, Compass Hill, launched with an unconfirmed €5m price guide, appears to have been delisted in recent weeks from property websites. Kinsale has well over a dozen properties currently on offer for over €1 million, with one, Walton Court, listed at €4.5m, and Oceanbreeze at €5 million.
