UFC fighter gets one month suspension for cocaine use

UFC gloves at the UFC performance institute in Shanghai. | Photo by STR/AFP via Getty Images

A UFC flyweight failed an in-competition USADA test and accepted the punishment. The UFC career of flyweight Juancamilo Rondero…


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UFC gloves at the UFC performance institute in Shanghai. | Photo by STR/AFP via Getty Images

A UFC flyweight failed an in-competition USADA test and accepted the punishment.

The UFC career of flyweight Juancamilo Ronderos is not off to a great start. Following an unsuccessful Octagon debut, where get got submitted by David Dvorak, the Colombian has now failed an in-competition USADA test for cocaine and accepted the one-month suspension for the infraction.

The test dates back to the day of UFC Vegas 27, May 22, when Ronderos met and was finished by Dvorak. Per USADA’s official statement, the punishment is retroactive to the day of the test, meaning that Ronderos is already eligible to compete again. You can read the whole document below:

““USADA announced today that Juancamilo Ronderos Alvis, of Las Vegas, Nev., has accepted a one-month sanction for a violation of the UFC® Anti-Doping Policy. Alvis, 26, tested positive for cocaine and its metabolite benzoylecgonine as the result of a sample collected in competition at the UFC Fight Night in Las Vegas on May 22, 2021. Cocaine, a non-Specified stimulant, is prohibited in-competition and considered a Substance of Abuse under the UFC Anti-Doping Policy and the UFC Prohibited List.”

“An athlete who discloses the use of a prohibited substance to USADA upon entering the UFC Anti-Doping Program will not be deemed to have committed a violation if USADA determines that a positive test for that substance resulted from the athlete’s use prior to entering the program. Alvis did not declare the use of cocaine on his onboarding declaration forms. Alvis received a reduction to the otherwise applicable period of ineligibility because under the UFC Anti-Doping Policy, athletes may receive a reduced sanction for Substances of Abuse if they can establish by a preponderance of the evidence that the violation did not enhance, and was not intended to enhance, the athlete’s performance in a Bout and they subsequently complete a drug rehabilitation program.”

Before his disappointing UFC debut, Ronderos (4-1) was on a four-fight winning streak at regional organization Warrior Xtreme Cagefighting, where he scored two submission and two decision wins, including one over former UFC fighter Eric Shelton.