Junior dos Santos was notified by USADA of a potential violation of the UFC anti-doping policy and he has been taken off UFC 215. JDS was to fight heavyweight up and comer Francis Ngannou.
JDS denies taking PEDs and released a statement to MMA Junkie through his rep Ana Claudia Guedes.
Junior tested positive for a substance called Hydrochlorothiazide, which is a diuretic and is banned by USADA due to its use as a masking agent. We do not know where this substance came from. Junior has had his blood and urine randomnly (sic) tested many times and has never once tested positive for a banned substance.
We requested testing of his B sample today. Most times, the B sample will show the identical results as the A sample. Therefore, we are already working on analyzing his nutritional supplements and medications to determine whether anything might have been contaminated. Jeff Novitzky and Donna Marcolini of the UFC have provided the guidance for this process, and we are grateful to them for their professionalism and competence.
Junior remains committed to and supportive of USADA drug testing – even if he is bearing an unfortunate consequence of it. He spoke personally with Francis Ngannou and apologized for the unintended consequence to him. Junior thanks Francis for the sympathy, understanding, and respect that transpired during their call, and very much looks forward to resolving this situation so that he and Francis can set up a new date to face one another.
Payout Perspective:
The former UFC Heavyweight Champion is in the unenviable situation of finding a purported contaminated product that contained the banned substance. As we just wrote about Guido Cannetti receiving a 10-month suspension for a contaminated substance, JDS claims that the illicit substance found in his sample is from a something he has no knowledge of its origin. Cannetti’s fight with USADA took a long time and one can only wonder how long such a process would take for JDS. Notably, Tom Lawlor effectively retired from MMA and turned to pro wrestling due to a flagged USADA test. Similarly, Lawlor claimed he did not know how the banned substance got into his system even after an extensive review of his intake. On the other end, in December 2016, Cristiano Justino was flagged by USADA, but despite facing a 1 year suspension, she was able to work with USADA officials and was able to compete in the UFC in July 2017. In Cyborg’s case, she was able to trace the origins of the banned substance, worked with her physician and USADA and did not face a year away. Although it is early, JDS must determine the contaminated product he may have taken which caused the positive test.
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