Nick Diaz accepts one-year USADA suspension for 2017 whereabouts violation
(https:)Nick Diaz has cleared up his latest issue with the United States Anti-Doping Agency.
On Monday, the drug testing organization announced that Diaz has accepted a one-year sanction for a whereabouts violation dating back to April 2017. The 34-year-old UFC welterweight failed to make himself available for out-of-competition testing on three occasions ranging from 2016-2017.
Dana White says Brock Lesnar could fight for title in UFC return, and Daniel Cormier is ecstatic
(mmajunkie.com)UFC President Dana White says there’s a possibility Brock Lesnar will get a shot at regaining the UFC heavyweight title the next time he steps in the octagon.
White recently said Lesnar (5-3 MMA, 4-3 UFC), who hasn’t fought for the promotion since the well documented UFC 200 debacle in July 2016, which led to a suspension for multiple failed drug tests, would “definitely” be making a return to the UFC in the future. The current WWE Universal Champion is currently an active member of the UFC roster and will reportedly be available following Sunday’s WrestleMania pay-per-view event in New Orleans.
Lesnar still has slightly more than six months to serve on his suspension, but that time will only begin to tick down once he re-enters the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency testing pool. Once his time is up, though, White said Lesnar could challenge the winner of July’s UFC 226 headliner between current heavyweight champ Stipe Miocic (18-2 MMA, 12-2 UFC) and Daniel Cormier (20-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC).
Ben Rothwell accepts two-year USADA sanction for failed drug test
(https:)It will be a while before we see Ben Rothwell back inside the Octagon.
The 36-year-old UFC heavyweight accepted a two-year sanction for failed out-of-competition drug tests taken back on Feb. 6 and Feb. 15, 2017, USADA officials announced Friday. Rothwell tested positive for “an anabolic androgenic steroid of exogenous origin” according to the release.
Rothwell explained that the test results were due to his physician prescribing him testosterone, but the USADA determined that did not meet the criteria to obtain a Therapeutic Use Exemption for the prohibited substance.
He will be eligible to compete again on Feb. 6, 2019.
Al Iaquinta meets Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 223
(mmajunkie.com)The lightweight title still will be up for grabs in the UFC 223 main event.
Khabib Nurmagomedov (25-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC) will stay in the headliner in New York and will fight Al Iaquinta (13-3-1 MMA, 8-2 UFC), who will move up from the main-card opening fight against Paul Felder (15-3 MMA, 7-3 UFC) for the fight. A person close to the fight revealed the news to MMAjunkie today. The person requested anonymity because he was not authorized to reveal the booking news.
But because Iaquinta weighed in for his fight with Felder at 155.2 pounds, he will be ineligible to win the title since that number is two-tenths of a pound over the title-fight limit.
Ariel Helwani - @arielhelwani
Dana White just announced that Al Iaquinta, if he wins, will be considered UFC champion. White said that NYSAC may not recognize him as champ because of the .2 but he will. That is a new one.
Conor McGregor charged with three counts of assault, one count of criminal mischief for bus attack / Conor McGregor’s bail set for $50,000, has next hearing June 14
(https:)Conor McGregor and SBG teammate Cian Cowley were arrested in New York late Thursday night, a spokesman for the New York Police Department confirmed with MMA Fighting.
McGregor has been charged with three counts of assault and one count of criminal mischief due to his involvement in a fracas at the Barclays Center following the UFC 223 media day. Cowley, an SBG teammate of McGregor’s and a fellow MMA fighther, was charged with one count of assault and one count of criminal mischief.
Posted by Braden
Conor McGregor’s bail set for $50,000, has next hearing June 14
In handcuffs, UFC superstar Conor McGregor stepped in front of a judge on Friday afternoon in Brooklyn.
The Irishman had a hearing on Friday afternoon at the Kings County Criminal Court. Heading into the hearing, the 29-year-old McGregor faced three counts of assault and one count of criminal mischief due to his UFC 223 bus attack on Thursday.
The judge issued an order of protection in favor of Michael Chiesa, Ozzy Arias, Ray Borg, Ricardo Chico on both Conor McGregor and his SBG teammate Cian Cowley, who was also involved in the attack.
The judge also set a $50,000 bail on Conor McGregor and a $25,000 bail on Cowley. Both fighters will be allowed to travel. McGregor’s next hearing is set for June 14.
Artem Lobov, Khabib Nurmagomedov involved in hotel confrontation
(https:)Khabib Nurmagomedov might not be getting his hands on Conor McGregor anytime soon, but he almost settled for a piece of one of his pals on Tuesday.
Courtesy of Sikjitsu head coach Rick Little (who can be heard narrating the action), footage has emerged of an altercation between the undefeated lightweight and McGregor’s close friend and SBG Ireland teammate Artem Lobov. The duo are in Brooklyn preparing for their respective bouts at UFC 223 on Saturday, and they had to be separated several times after confronting each other at the host hotel.
USADA suspends UFC’s Amanda Lemos two years for testing positive for steroid
(https:)Amanda Lemos is the latest fighter to be suspended by USADA for a UFC anti-doping policy violation.
USADA suspended the women’s bantamweight athlete two years for testing positive for the steroid stanozolol and its metabolite, stemming from an out-of-competition sample collected Nov. 8, 2017, the UFC’s anti-doping partner announced Wednesday. Lemos won’t be eligible to fight again in the UFC until November 2019.
Video: Drew Chatman flips off of KO’d opponent’s back, gets disqualified at LFA 36
(https:)This is a new one.
Following the main event of Legacy Fighting Alliance 36 on Friday, one of the amateur “postlims” saw heavyweight Irvins Ayala knock himself out by attempting to land a hammerfist on grounded opponent Drew Chatman.
And yet that isn’t the strangest part of this story.
For some reason, Chatman decided to celebrate the dubious win by standing on Ayala’s back and doing a front flip that ended with him landing partially on his opponent and partially with his butt on the canvas:
Per the LFA Twitter account, Ayala KO’d himself by slamming his own chin into Chatman’s knee and Chatman was subsequently disqualified for his post-match antics,
Augusto Mendes fails USADA drug test, pulled from UFC Atlantic City fight
(https:)Augusto Mendes will not be competing next month in New Jersey, after all.
The UFC bantamweight fighter failed a USADA out-of-competition drug test, stemming from a sample collected March 7, according to a release sent out Tuesday by the UFC. Mendes is now facing a UFC anti-doping policy violation and USADA will handle the adjudication process and sanctions.
Biceps injury knocks Paulo Costa out of fight with Uriah Hall at UFC-Atlantic City
(mmajunkie.com)An injury has knocked a high-profile fight from the UFC’s return to Atlantic City next month.
Paulo Costa (11-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) today said a biceps tear has forced him out of a middleweight fight against Uriah Hall (13-8 MMA, 6-6 UFC) at UFC fight Night 128. UFC officials had not yet made the matchup official, so likely won’t make an announcement of the injury. It is not clear if Hall will remain a part of the card against a new opponent.
Michal Oleksiejczuk gets one-year suspension, win overturned for UFC 219 drug test failure
(https:)Michal Oleksiejczuk’s second UFC fight will have to wait.
Oleksiejczuk was issued a one-year suspension Tuesday by the Nevada Athletic Commission (NAC) stemming from his failed drug test in relation to his Octagon debut at UFC 219. Oleksiejczuk tested positive in an in-competition drug screening ahead of the Dec. 30 bout, which initially saw him defeat Khalil Rountree via unanimous decision. Oleksiejczuk popped for the anti-estrogen agent clomiphene, a commission official told MMA Fighting.
In addition to the one-year suspension, Oleksiejczuk was fined $3,600 — 30% of his $12,000 purse — and will be required to submit a clean drug test before seeking relicensure. The Polish light heavyweight’s win over Rountree has also been overturned into a no-contest.
Cynthia Calvillo receives nine-month suspension, fine from Nevada Athletic Commission for marijuana failure
(https:)Cynthia Calvillo will face some extra time on the sidelines courtesy of the Nevada Athletic Commission (NAC) for her positive UFC 219 drug test for marijuana.
Less than a week after Calvillo accepted a six-month suspension from USADA, the 30-year-old strawweight contender was issued an additional nine-month suspension by the NAC at a Tuesday meeting in Las Vegas. The nine-month suspension runs concurrently with Calvillo’s USADA suspension, meaning Calvillo will be cleared to return on Sept. 30.
Calvillo was also fined $6,150 — 15 percent of her $41,000 purse — and will be required to submit a clean drug test before seeking relicensure.
Yoel Romero: Robert Whittaker title rematch set for UFC 225
(mmajunkie.com)Yoel Romero said his rematch with Robert Whittaker is set for June’s UFC 225 fight card.
Romero (13-2 MMA, 9-1 UFC) announced the middleweight title fight against Whittaker (19-4 MMA, 10-2 UFC), which had been previously reported by ESPN.com and BJPenn.com, on today’s edition of the “JRE MMA Show” podcast with UFC commentator Joe Rogan.
Cynthia Calvillo accepts six-month suspension for marijuana
(https:)Cynthia Calvillo’s failed drug test won’t keep her out of competition for long.
The 30-year-old strawweight has accepted a six-month suspension from the USADA after an in-competition drug test came in positive for Carboxy-Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) — a marijuana metabolite — last December, per a USADA release.
Jon Fitch vs. Paul Daley set for Bellator 199 in San Jose
(https:)Bellator’s newest addition has his first assignment.
Former UFC welterweight title challenger Jon Fitch signed an exclusive contract with the promotion earlier this week, and on Friday night’s Bellator 195 card, it was announced that Fitch would be facing welterweight standout Paul Daley when the organization heads to San Jose for Bellator 199 on May 12.
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