UFC veteran Gleison Tibau ‘100 percent sure’ other fighters used substance he was suspended for

Gleison Tibau claims other fighters also used erythropoietin (EPO), the substance that led to his two-year suspension.

On November 7th, UFC veteran Gleison Tibau will finally have the opportunity to get his career back on track. It will be the day when his two-year suspension for testing positive for a banned substance will lapse.

Tibau was found to have erythropoietin (EPO) in his system during both in and out of competition drug tests for his fight against Abel Trujillo in Sao Paulo in November 2015. His submission win was overturned to a disqualification loss.

As stated on the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) website, EPO aims to stimulate red blood cell production, which ultimately improves the amount of oxygen that the blood can carry to the body’s muscle. This blood doping practice has been banned since the early 90’s.

According to Tibau, most of his contemporaries have used EPO for their respective reasons, but he was the first fighter to get a taste of USADA’s punishment for it.

“It’s a substance that no UFC athlete will point a finger at me and say anything because everyone else used it,” Tibau told MMA Fighting. “I’m 100 percent sure everyone else used it. I was the first fighter to get caught with this new USADA rule. I was misinformed that this substance wasn’t allowed with USADA. I needed it because my tests showed I had low red blood cells, so I needed that to get better.”

Tibau has nothing but regrets for his two-year suspension, a period that he describes as “the worst of his life.” But now that all of it is behind him, the 34-year-old Brazilian fighter has his sights sets on making a return, optimistically looking at December as the potential date.

“After two long years, I’m just waiting for my next fight,” Tibau said. “The UFC guaranteed me I’ll fight in December, so I’m just waiting. It was the worst two years of my life. Imagine yourself going to the gym every day knowing that you can’t fight for two years.”

“I didn’t sleep well several times. Money became a problem,” he continued. “Fighters only make money when they are competing, but bills won’t stop coming. Months and months without fights, that disturbed me. That really disturbed me. I thought about doing something else, following a different path. A lot of things crossed my mind.”

“Not making any money for two years was bad, but I also worried about being outdated when I came back to the sport. Training with the best at the gym changed my mind in that aspect, but finances were a big issue because fighters only make money when they fight.”

As for the weight class he will be fighting at, Tibau is looking at either lightweight or welterweight, depending on the amount of time he will be given to prepare.

“I’ll be ready to fight at 170 or at 155,” Tibau said. “I used to take fights on short notice and suffer a lot to cut weight. I won’t do such crazy thing anymore. I want to fight to win, to be at my best all the time. If the UFC offers me fights on one or two weeks’ notice, it has to be at 170. If they give me a full camp, I’ll fight at 155.”

Gleison Tibau claims other fighters also used erythropoietin (EPO), the substance that led to his two-year suspension.

On November 7th, UFC veteran Gleison Tibau will finally have the opportunity to get his career back on track. It will be the day when his two-year suspension for testing positive for a banned substance will lapse.

Tibau was found to have erythropoietin (EPO) in his system during both in and out of competition drug tests for his fight against Abel Trujillo in Sao Paulo in November 2015. His submission win was overturned to a disqualification loss.

As stated on the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) website, EPO aims to stimulate red blood cell production, which ultimately improves the amount of oxygen that the blood can carry to the body’s muscle. This blood doping practice has been banned since the early 90’s.

According to Tibau, most of his contemporaries have used EPO for their respective reasons, but he was the first fighter to get a taste of USADA’s punishment for it.

“It’s a substance that no UFC athlete will point a finger at me and say anything because everyone else used it,” Tibau told MMA Fighting. “I’m 100 percent sure everyone else used it. I was the first fighter to get caught with this new USADA rule. I was misinformed that this substance wasn’t allowed with USADA. I needed it because my tests showed I had low red blood cells, so I needed that to get better.”

Tibau has nothing but regrets for his two-year suspension, a period that he describes as “the worst of his life.” But now that all of it is behind him, the 34-year-old Brazilian fighter has his sights sets on making a return, optimistically looking at December as the potential date.

“After two long years, I’m just waiting for my next fight,” Tibau said. “The UFC guaranteed me I’ll fight in December, so I’m just waiting. It was the worst two years of my life. Imagine yourself going to the gym every day knowing that you can’t fight for two years.”

“I didn’t sleep well several times. Money became a problem,” he continued. “Fighters only make money when they are competing, but bills won’t stop coming. Months and months without fights, that disturbed me. That really disturbed me. I thought about doing something else, following a different path. A lot of things crossed my mind.”

“Not making any money for two years was bad, but I also worried about being outdated when I came back to the sport. Training with the best at the gym changed my mind in that aspect, but finances were a big issue because fighters only make money when they fight.”

As for the weight class he will be fighting at, Tibau is looking at either lightweight or welterweight, depending on the amount of time he will be given to prepare.

“I’ll be ready to fight at 170 or at 155,” Tibau said. “I used to take fights on short notice and suffer a lot to cut weight. I won’t do such crazy thing anymore. I want to fight to win, to be at my best all the time. If the UFC offers me fights on one or two weeks’ notice, it has to be at 170. If they give me a full camp, I’ll fight at 155.”