Hector Lombard failed his UFC 182 fight night drug test, according to a Nevada Athletic Commission report obtained by MMAFighting.com.
The 37-year-old Lombard tested positive for the anabolic steroid desoxymethyltestosterone, according to the report. Online resource Wikipedia calls the performance-enhancing drug, which is also known as “DMT,” “one of the first designer steroids to be marketed as a PED to athletes and bodybuilders.”
Lombard defeated Josh Burkman via unanimous decision at UFC 182 on Jan. 3. The win improved his record as a welterweight to 3-0.
The UFC has confirmed that Lombard’s drug test failure was the reason why his April 25 fight against Rory MacDonald was canceled. As a result, the organization is currently exploring new fight options for MacDonald, while Demetrious Johnson vs. Kyoji Horiguchi for the UFC flyweight title was named the new UFC 186 co-main event.
NAC executive director Bob Bennett said he was unsure whether Lombard will receive a temporary suspension at the NAC hearing on Feb. 17 because the agenda has yet to be completed, but it is certain that the former Bellator middleweight champion will be forced to meet with the commission in the near future to explain the positive drug test and could face disciplinary action, as well. As a result, his immediate fighting future is unknown.
According to the report, the drug test results were reported back to the NAC from the Quest Diagnostics lab in Kansas on Jan. 13. Josh Burkman passed his fight-night test. Typically, the NAC publicly announces the results of all in and out-of-competition testing after an event, however, that wasn’t the case this time.
MMAFighting.com briefly spoke to Lombard Tuesday morning when the news of his fight against MacDonald being canceled first broke. At the time he said he had no idea why the fight was taken off the card. After obtaining his drug test results, MMAFighting.com contacted Lombard again. He declined to comment on the situation because he said he wasn’t aware that he had tested positive.
“I don’t think steroids win fights although they do help,” Burkman told MMAFighting.com, “nor do I think we should judge the athletes so harshly. I still respect Hector Lombard as a man and as a martial artist.
“Remember this while reading people’s reactions to UFC test results: those who judge others the harshest are the worst offenders and biggest liars. Anderson Silva insisted a life-time ban, and then he tested positive.”
“I’ve seen PED’s used by athletes in all sports at all levels. This is not an MMA issue. It seems to be part of sports. All sports. Lance Armstrong, A-Rod, baseball, football, basketball, speed skating … Anyone who overlooks this is nieve. That doesn’t mean all athletes use them, I’m just not surprised when guys do.”