With word out today that Alistair Overeem has been popped for elevated testosterone, the idea of Testosterone Replacement Therapy, or TRT, is back in the headlines. (TRT is called cheating and a form of drug abuse in every other major sport, as well as in the UFC if you aren’t lucky enough to find a doctor to provide you a convincing prescription.)
That’s the last place UFC President Dana White wants it.
You see, in just two short months, the UFC returns to Brazil for the long anticipated, and often derided rematch between UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva and previously vanquished foe, Mr. Always Be Testosteronin’, Chael Sonnen.
The thing about Mr. A.B.T. is that, in addition to being a can’t-miss interview and beloved UFC heel, he suffers from the wretched condition of the dreaded Low T. Luckily, he lives in an age where he can acquire, and the UFC allows, Testosterone Replacement Therapy. (With the right prescription from the right doctor—it will help if he’s willing to get up and help you out at hearings. And do it with a straight face.)
And here’s the deal. Early reports are that Overeem’s T level was lower than what got Mr. A.B.T. in trouble in his first bout against Spider Silva. White will do his best to steer the debate away from comparisons to Sonnen and the issues that raises, but Dana doesn’t exactly wield a huge club with the media at large, so we’ll see how that goes.
And once you discuss TRT, how can you not bring HGH into the fold? UFC God-Man Randy Couture might have something to say about that, if you believe certain old Joe Rogan interviews. The UFC’s lore is built on Couture, and they need his aura to last. Rumored HGH use won’t help that.
We’ll sit back and see how it all shakes out, maybe a mystery prescription will appear and it will become a ‘paperwork’ issue again.
Except that’s not what TRT is. It’s a cheating issue, plain and simple, whether Dana White will want to admit it (yet) or not.
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