Former Strikeforce lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez was issued a two-year sanction from USADA after an arbitrator ruled that Melendez was under the jurisdiction of the testing organization despite being cut by the UFC 4 days prior.
The 37-year-old Melendez argued that USADA no longer retained jurisdiction over him. The arbitrator decided in a July 7th written opinion that he was guilty of ingesting a banned substance. But the legal argument was whether Melendez believed he was still under contract with the UFC.
Final Award Usadav.melendez May 1 2020 Redacted by MMA Payout on Scribd
He was flagged for the use of peptide GHRP-6 on October 16, 2019 and did not request testing of the B sample. The use of this substance is related to growth hormone and enables the user to gain muscle while decreasing body fat.
Throughout his time in the UFC, Melendez had been tested 17 times but had not tested positive for any prohibited substances. On September 26, 2019, Melendez submitted his 2019 fourth quarter whereabouts information to USADA and his updated information on October 1, 2019 and October 10, 2019. On October 10, 2019, he was in Tampa, Florida, “Working UFC” according to the form. Notably, the UFC had made the decision to terminate Melendez’s contract but did not notify USADA immediately as per company protocol.
Melendez argued that he was terminated by the UFC on October 12, 2019 but submitted to a USADA test on October 16, 2019. If he would have known of his termination, he would not have submitted to the test. His manager was informed by the UFC in late October or on or about November 1 that he was terminated.
On November 6, 2019, Melendez received the following email from the UFC’s Tracy Long which stated: “I apologize for the delay in sending this letter. I have been traveling and someone from my team must have inadvertently filed it before I was able to send it.” It included an attached letter dated October 12, 2019 from Hunter Campbell which terminated Melendez.
At arbitration, Melendez argued that due to the late notice from the UFC, USADA should not have jurisdiction over him at the time he submitted the drug test since he was no longer a part of the UFC Anti-Doping Program. Essentially, the evidence should be excluded because it was taken when he was no longer a part of the program.
FINAL AWARD Melendez July 7… by MMA Payout on Scribd
But the arbitrator reasoned differently. “USADA asserts that, for purposes of its jurisdiction under the UFC ADP, Mr. Melendez’ contractual obligation to comply with the UFC ADP remained in effect until he received notice on November 6, 2019 that the UFC had exercised its right to terminate his contract prior to its expiration.” The arbitrator also cites a portion of Melendez’s Promotional Agreement which is redacted. The rationale is that Melendez believed he was still in the UFC protocol and should have been held to that standard even if he did not know he was terminated.
Melendez argued that USADA attempted to use the UFC’s Anti-Doping Program as a non-compete agreement as the sanction post-contract would serve as an ad hoc non-compete. However, the arbitrator determined that this was not the case.
Melendez decided not to argue the merits of his case as noted in the July opinion citing that the jurisdictional issue should have negated any response needed on the merits. It is also interesting to note that Melendez did not request that the B sample tested. While the B sample is taken from the A sample this would seem fruitless for Melendez to do. However, testing the B sample ensures that the A sample finding was correct and also addresses any contamination arguments.
The primary issue of jurisdiction was decided this past May (see first embedded opinion) in a separate ruling. That ruling, decided July’s case considering that Melendez did not argue the merits of the findings. Rather, he asserted the already defeated argument that Melendez was not subject to the terms of the UFC ADP at the time he was tested.
It is interesting to note that the May opinion indicated that the UFC contemplated cutting Melendez after a losing streak. The unfortunate positive finding came at a time when he was already going to be released by the company. Thus, not only was he going to be terminated, he now may be precluded from fighting in organizations that would consider the USADA sanction. Moreover, commissions could look to the USADA sanction and not hire Melendez.
Its noteworthy that Melendez was one of the first MMA fighters to play hardball in negotiating with the UFC. In February 2014, he had signed a multiyear contract with Bellator, but the UFC had matching rights and decided to match (or do better) than the terms offered by the rival promotion. The contract was noteworthy as Melendez reportedly negotiated a deal to appear on PPV and receive an upside that would kick in at a lower rate than most.
His last fight at UFC 239 in July 2019 he was paid $200,000 in a loss to Arnold Allen.
Its a sad ending to Melendez’s career with the UFC. One might argue that Melendez should have argued the substantive issues even if he believed he should prevail on the jurisdictional issue. But, this was not the case. The arbitration findings appear unfair and one would argue that Melendez should be spared due to the lack of communication the UFC had with USADA and the fighter. But, the arbitrator cited to policy considerations highlighting that the basis of the anti-doping policy was to find those athletes using banned substance. If this was a criminal case, one would argue that the evidence (Melendez’s failed test) should be thrown out because of the mistake and factual timeline in the test. But, this is not a criminal case, this is the UFC Anti-Doping Program and Melendez knew that taking the test he submitted to its findings.
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