Ashlee Evans-Smith has a date with the Nevada Athletic Commission (NAC) on Monday, and she didn’t even know about it until late this week.
Evans-Smith allegedly tested positive for diuretics following her loss to Raquel Pennington at UFC 181 on Dec. 6 in Las Vegas. The NAC sent her a letter to notify her of the charge, but mailed it to her old address, Evans-Smith’s manager told MMAFighting.com.
Evans-Smith is in New York doing seminars and only found out about the news Wednesday. McLeish said he was surprised when UFC matchmaker Sean Shelby called to inform him, and they did not hear from the commission until Thursday. Evans-Smith, who doesn’t get home until late Sunday night, will call into the NAC meeting Monday via conference.
“She hasn’t even had time to look at her stuff or anything,” McLeish said. “It kind of sucks.”
NAC executive director Bob Bennett said the commission mailed the information to the address it had on file for her. McLeish said Evans-Smith, a California native, fought in Las Vegas back in June and then moved in August. But he said the UFC and commission should have had the new address after UFC 181 and must not have updated their system.
NAC regulations require the commission to serve a copy of the complaint by certified mail. Evans-Smith would then have 20 days to respond, admitting or denying the alleged rule violation. At that point, she would have to attend a hearing.
“It was mailed to her last-known address that she put on her application,” Bennett told MMAFighting.com. “Whether she got it or not is irrelevant to us.”
McLeish said Evans-Smith, who took the fight on short notice when Holly Holm pulled out, is denying the use of diuretics, which can be used to aid weight cutting or as a masking agent for performance-enhancing drugs. McLeish is unsure if she will fight the accusation, which could lead to further legal fees.
“All her supplements are protein or flower- and plant-based,” McLeish said. “They said it wasn’t a plant-based one.”
McLeish said Evans-Smith is “embarrassed” by the charge and he doesn’t get why she is facing discipline while Jon Jones is not for testing positive for cocaine a month before his fight at UFC 182.
“It’s not performance-enhancing or anything,” McLeish said of diuretics. “I don’t understand why they’re talking about her doing diuretics, but Jon Jones did cocaine and nothing is happening to him. Cocaine is OK, because it’s out of competition? He was in training camp.”