LAS VEGAS — UFC president Dana White isn’t against testosterone replacement therapy on principal, he told reporters after Thursday afternoon’s UFC 132 pre-fight press conference, but all testosterone use isn’t equal in the boss’s eyes
“There’s a difference between testosterone replacement therapy and when you get it to a level where it’s performance-enhancing,” White said.
As for the differences between the situation with Chael Sonnen, who White said should have been granted a license to fight “a month ago” after serving his suspension for testosterone use, and Nate Marquardt, who he fired from the UFC after the fighter was pulled from last weekend’s UFC Live card for his use of the same hormone, a lot seems to hinge on past behavior and full disclosure, at least in White’s eyes.
“The difference with Chael and Marquardt, is we can talk about everything in the Chael incident. We can’t with Marquardt. I’ve seen some of the stuff people are saying. You think I’m this crazy, emotional psycho. Give me a break. This isn’t the first time. Everybody’s like, ‘Oh, give him a second chance.’ This would be like the fourth time.”
White pointed to medical privacy laws in the state of Pennsylvania as the reasons why he couldn’t talk more about the Marquardt situation, but seized on Marquardt’s past positive drug test and his problems gaining a therapeutic-use exemption in New Jersey as reasons for Marquardt’s dismissal.
“He tested positive before, then apparently he was on suspension with New Jersey, because his levels were high, then he comes into [Pittsburgh] and he doesn’t pass his medicals. Now you tell me: is that the fourth chance? Or is that a second chance? Sounds like a fourth chance to me.”
As for why Marquardt was even offered a fight in Pittsburgh when he was still dealing with lingering issues from his TUE application in New Jersey, White said he wasn’t aware that Marquardt was not totally cleared following UFC 128, though other UFC officials were.
“I literally didn’t know that until Thursday, but people in my organization did — the people who handled the medicals and things like that,” White said. “I was pretty upset about it when I found out about it on Thursday. …If I would’ve known earlier, I would have made sure it was handled differently.”
The way White sees it, testosterone replacement therapy is not, in and of itself, always a problem for professional fighters. There are some who may legitimately need it for one reason or another, he said, and those fighters “probably need to really take it.”
That said, there’s getting back to normal hormone levels and then there’s getting to higher than normal levels, and the distinction is what matters.
“I think it depends. Listen, it’s obvious that there’s guys who use steroids early in their career, and when you get up to around that age, 30 years old, your body isn’t producing it the way that it’s supposed to. Listen, I’m the furthest f–king thing from a doctor you’ll ever see, but I guess if they go in there and start replacing it and getting it to normal levels where normal, average guys are at these levels. If it’s five or whatever over that, you’re taking too much or you’re going to see the wrong doctor. I think this whole testosterone therapy thing works for guys who absolutely need it, but I think it’s a messy loophole.”
In the case of Marquardt, White said he thinks it’s “fair” that New Jersey won’t overturn his win against Dan Miller, but said the fighter has absolutely no future in the UFC, even though there’s no personal animosity between them.
“Nate’s done,” said White. “I’m done with Nate. Listen, Nate’s a really nice guy. He’s a really sweet, nice, humble guy, but the facts are the facts and it is what it is. It’s easier to go after a guy like Josh Barnett. He’s just callous and rude and he’s a d–k. So when he does it it’s easier to just go, you know what, f–k Josh Barnett. The difference is, Nate’s such a sweet, nice guy, but the same results.”
A few months ago, a fighter like Marquardt might have been able to reconcile his career in Strikeforce after being banished from the UFC. But now that the UFC’s parent company, Zuffa, owns that organization as well, could Marquardt still have a shot with MMA’s second-biggest promotion?
“I don’t know,” White said. “Don’t even ask me about Strikeforce.”
LAS VEGAS — UFC president Dana White isn’t against testosterone replacement therapy on principal, he told reporters after Thursday afternoon’s UFC 132 pre-fight press conference, but all testosterone use isn’t equal in the boss’s eyes
“There’s a difference between testosterone replacement therapy and when you get it to a level where it’s performance-enhancing,” White said.
As for the differences between the situation with Chael Sonnen, who White said should have been granted a license to fight “a month ago” after serving his suspension for testosterone use, and Nate Marquardt, who he fired from the UFC after the fighter was pulled from last weekend’s UFC Live card for his use of the same hormone, a lot seems to hinge on past behavior and full disclosure, at least in White’s eyes.
“The difference with Chael and Marquardt, is we can talk about everything in the Chael incident. We can’t with Marquardt. I’ve seen some of the stuff people are saying. You think I’m this crazy, emotional psycho. Give me a break. This isn’t the first time. Everybody’s like, ‘Oh, give him a second chance.’ This would be like the fourth time.”
White pointed to medical privacy laws in the state of Pennsylvania as the reasons why he couldn’t talk more about the Marquardt situation, but seized on Marquardt’s past positive drug test and his problems gaining a therapeutic-use exemption in New Jersey as reasons for Marquardt’s dismissal.
“He tested positive before, then apparently he was on suspension with New Jersey, because his levels were high, then he comes into [Pittsburgh] and he doesn’t pass his medicals. Now you tell me: is that the fourth chance? Or is that a second chance? Sounds like a fourth chance to me.”
As for why Marquardt was even offered a fight in Pittsburgh when he was still dealing with lingering issues from his TUE application in New Jersey, White said he wasn’t aware that Marquardt was not totally cleared following UFC 128, though other UFC officials were.
“I literally didn’t know that until Thursday, but people in my organization did — the people who handled the medicals and things like that,” White said. “I was pretty upset about it when I found out about it on Thursday. …If I would’ve known earlier, I would have made sure it was handled differently.”
The way White sees it, testosterone replacement therapy is not, in and of itself, always a problem for professional fighters. There are some who may legitimately need it for one reason or another, he said, and those fighters “probably need to really take it.”
That said, there’s getting back to normal hormone levels and then there’s getting to higher than normal levels, and the distinction is what matters.
“I think it depends. Listen, it’s obvious that there’s guys who use steroids early in their career, and when you get up to around that age, 30 years old, your body isn’t producing it the way that it’s supposed to. Listen, I’m the furthest f–king thing from a doctor you’ll ever see, but I guess if they go in there and start replacing it and getting it to normal levels where normal, average guys are at these levels. If it’s five or whatever over that, you’re taking too much or you’re going to see the wrong doctor. I think this whole testosterone therapy thing works for guys who absolutely need it, but I think it’s a messy loophole.”
In the case of Marquardt, White said he thinks it’s “fair” that New Jersey won’t overturn his win against Dan Miller, but said the fighter has absolutely no future in the UFC, even though there’s no personal animosity between them.
“Nate’s done,” said White. “I’m done with Nate. Listen, Nate’s a really nice guy. He’s a really sweet, nice, humble guy, but the facts are the facts and it is what it is. It’s easier to go after a guy like Josh Barnett. He’s just callous and rude and he’s a d–k. So when he does it it’s easier to just go, you know what, f–k Josh Barnett. The difference is, Nate’s such a sweet, nice guy, but the same results.”
A few months ago, a fighter like Marquardt might have been able to reconcile his career in Strikeforce after being banished from the UFC. But now that the UFC’s parent company, Zuffa, owns that organization as well, could Marquardt still have a shot with MMA’s second-biggest promotion?
“I don’t know,” White said. “Don’t even ask me about Strikeforce.”
Nate Marquardt will have to wait until after Independence Day to have his Pennsylvania state athletic commission suspension lifted. A spokesman from his Alchemist Management team told MMA Fighting that Marquardt’s camp has been informed by the commission that “all of our paperwork and lab results are in order,” and the team is hoping he will be removed from the suspension list around July 5 or 6.
Meanwhile, as other developments of Marquardt’s hormone replacement therapy have come to light, additional related issues have been raised. Among them: if New Jersey denied Marquardt a testosterone usage exemption (TUE) and placed him on its suspension rolls following his March UFC 128 win over Dan Miller, couldn’t the result of that fight be changed to a no contest?
According to New Jersey athletic control board legal counsel Nick Lembo, the answer is no.
As Lembo explained it, a TUE is a two-pronged process. First, the commission and its doctors must determine whether the treatment is a medical necessity, and second, the fighter must still test within normal testosterone ranges to qualify for competition.
Here’s the tricky part. Determining medical necessity is a lengthy ordeal that can take months. By way of context, Marquardt first approached New Jersey officials about a TUE on Feb. 11, and he was still working with them on the process when his TUE was denied on June 23, a full four-and-a-half month stretch.
During that time, state commission doctors examined medical records, paperwork, check blood test results, and interacted with the athlete’s doctors. Because that type of due diligence takes so much time, fighters are allowed to compete while undergoing the process as long as they can test in an acceptable range in the meantime.
New Jersey regulators gave Marquardt approval to fight, provided that he go through this entire lengthy process and that his testosterone levels remained within range. According to Lembo, just in relation to the March bout, he was subject to testosterone-level checks twice before the bout, on fight night, and twice afterward.
“He was not at an unfair advantage against Dan Miller in New Jersey,” Lembo said. “If his levels were abnormal, the fight result would have been changed and Nate Marquardt would have been suspended, and his TUE would have been denied at that time. But when he fought Miller, his levels were fine.”
The problem then, came afterward, as the state continued to monitor him through June. Marquardt had been asked to stop undergoing therapy for eight weeks to check his baseline levels, which he did. He took three tests in May, and two in June. Everything seemed fine until he returned to his personal doctor, a primary care physician. The NJACB had strongly suggested Marquardt continue his care under a board-certified endocrinologist.
On June 16, a week before his scheduled Pennsylvania fight with Rick Story, Marquardt took another test in his continued New Jersey monitoring. The results of this one, however, were high, forcing a TUE denial and full disclosure to the Pennsylvania commission. For the longtime UFC mainstay, it was the beginning of the end of his octagon career. But since it had no impact on his March fight with Miller, the result of that fight — a Marquardt unanimous decision — will stand.
“What we want to do is ensure there’s no unfair advantage,” Lembo said. “On the night of the fight, there was not. Nate came to us and cooperated. He was subjected to several tests. Once the TUE process started, he was compliant all the way along until weeks later, returning to his original treating physician. His next test had problems. If you’re continually tested and your level is high, you’re going to get caught.”
Nate Marquardt will have to wait until after Independence Day to have his Pennsylvania state athletic commission suspension lifted. A spokesman from his Alchemist Management team told MMA Fighting that Marquardt’s camp has been informed by the commission that “all of our paperwork and lab results are in order,” and the team is hoping he will be removed from the suspension list around July 5 or 6.
Meanwhile, as other developments of Marquardt’s hormone replacement therapy have come to light, additional related issues have been raised. Among them: if New Jersey denied Marquardt a testosterone usage exemption (TUE) and placed him on its suspension rolls following his March UFC 128 win over Dan Miller, couldn’t the result of that fight be changed to a no contest?
According to New Jersey athletic control board legal counsel Nick Lembo, the answer is no.
As Lembo explained it, a TUE is a two-pronged process. First, the commission and its doctors must determine whether the treatment is a medical necessity, and second, the fighter must still test within normal testosterone ranges to qualify for competition.
Here’s the tricky part. Determining medical necessity is a lengthy ordeal that can take months. By way of context, Marquardt first approached New Jersey officials about a TUE on Feb. 11, and he was still working with them on the process when his TUE was denied on June 23, a full four-and-a-half month stretch.
During that time, state commission doctors examined medical records, paperwork, check blood test results, and interacted with the athlete’s doctors. Because that type of due diligence takes so much time, fighters are allowed to compete while undergoing the process as long as they can test in an acceptable range in the meantime.
New Jersey regulators gave Marquardt approval to fight, provided that he go through this entire lengthy process and that his testosterone levels remained within range. According to Lembo, just in relation to the March bout, he was subject to testosterone-level checks twice before the bout, on fight night, and twice afterward.
“He was not at an unfair advantage against Dan Miller in New Jersey,” Lembo said. “If his levels were abnormal, the fight result would have been changed and Nate Marquardt would have been suspended, and his TUE would have been denied at that time. But when he fought Miller, his levels were fine.”
The problem then, came afterward, as the state continued to monitor him through June. Marquardt had been asked to stop undergoing therapy for eight weeks to check his baseline levels, which he did. He took three tests in May, and two in June. Everything seemed fine until he returned to his personal doctor, a primary care physician. The NJACB had strongly suggested Marquardt continue his care under a board-certified endocrinologist.
On June 16, a week before his scheduled Pennsylvania fight with Rick Story, Marquardt took another test in his continued New Jersey monitoring. The results of this one, however, were high, forcing a TUE denial and full disclosure to the Pennsylvania commission. For the longtime UFC mainstay, it was the beginning of the end of his octagon career. But since it had no impact on his March fight with Miller, the result of that fight — a Marquardt unanimous decision — will stand.
“What we want to do is ensure there’s no unfair advantage,” Lembo said. “On the night of the fight, there was not. Nate came to us and cooperated. He was subjected to several tests. Once the TUE process started, he was compliant all the way along until weeks later, returning to his original treating physician. His next test had problems. If you’re continually tested and your level is high, you’re going to get caught.”
Since MMA’s inception, the general concept of family has been an integral part of a sport that is often billed as individualistic. Now more than ever the sport has seen family competition, with fathers training sons, brothers fighting on the same cards…
Since MMA‘s inception, the general concept of family has been an integral part of a sport that is often billed as individualistic.
Now more than ever the sport has seen family competition, with fathers training sons, brothers fighting on the same cards, and overall family camaraderie on high display.
The Gracie family popularized the idea of one style being better than another, with numerous fighters and families have tried to disprove the Gracie theory, with not very many proving successful.
Take Royce Gracie for example at UFC 1. After his impressive wins over Art Jimmerson, Ken Shamrock, and Gerard Gordeau, Gracie realized his family’s true purpose: proving his family’s style was the best in the world. Surely a better feeling than any belt or dollar can give a fighter.
Flash forward to UFC 128 in New Jersey. Dan and Jim Miller of Sparta, N.J., fight in front of their hometown crowd at the Prudential Center. Though Dan lost and Jim won, nothing will take away the experience the brothers had that night.
And so, brotherly love has been redefined in and outside of the octagon. However, one question remaining is which brotherly duo is the best MMA has to offer?
Filed under: UFCNEWARK, NJ — This is the UFC 128 live blog for Nate Marquardt vs. Dan Miller, a middleweight bout on tonight’s UFC 128 pay-per-view from the Prudential Center.
Marquardt (30-10-2) is coming off a title eliminator loss to Yushin Okami …
NEWARK, NJ — This is the UFC 128 live blog for Nate Marquardt vs. Dan Miller, a middleweight bout on tonight’s UFC 128 pay-per-view from the Prudential Center.
Marquardt (30-10-2) is coming off a title eliminator loss to Yushin Okami at UFC 122 in November. Miller (13-4) is moving up to the main card to replace Yoshihiro Akiyama, who withdrew from the fight due to the recent crisis in Japan.
Filed under: UFC, FanHouse Exclusive, interviewNEW YORK — After losing three fights in a row to top-flight competition during a one-year span, many thought Dan Miller’s days in the UFC were done. Instead, the New Jersey middleweight was granted a repr…
NEW YORK — After losing three fights in a row to top-flight competition during a one-year span, many thought Dan Miller‘s days in the UFC were done. Instead, the New Jersey middleweight was granted a reprieve, one he’s capitalized upon with back-to-back wins.
Why did he get another chance at a time when others are seeking new employment? It certainly doesn’t hurt that he has an “anywhere, anytime” attitude to his fighting career. That approach has repeatedly proven invaluable to the UFC, and they tapped into Miller’s gameness again this week. After originally being matched up with Nick Catone in a UFC 128 prelim, Miller got a call to replace Yoshihiro Akiyama after the Japanese star withdrew from the event following last week’s devastating natural disaster in his home country.
Miller’s acceptance of a bout with Nate Marquardt with just one week to prepare illustrates the dual nature of the short-notice fight. Though a loser of two of his last three, Marquardt is a high-profile fighter who remains considered one of the 10 best middleweights in the world. Because of that, Marquardt represents both a risky proposition and a breakthrough opportunity for Miller.
Filed under: UFCNEWARK, N.J. — Nate Marquardt has always gone about his mixed martial arts career with a quiet class. He’s never been one to trash-talk his opponent, and admits that about “95 percent of the time,” he’s liked the man standing across th…
NEWARK, N.J. — Nate Marquardt has always gone about his mixed martial arts career with a quiet class. He’s never been one to trash-talk his opponent, and admits that about “95 percent of the time,” he’s liked the man standing across the cage from him on fight night. That holds true for his Saturday night opponent Dan Miller, who carries himself with a similar comportment.
Miller stepped up to fight Marquardt on one week’s notice after Yoshihiro Akiyama withdrew from UFC 128 following the devastating natural disasters that struck Japan. And while Marquardt has his focus only on the task in front of him, he didn’t hold back when he was asked if he was one of the many middleweights who hoped to get a crack at British contender Michael Bisping.
“I would love to fight that guy just to punch him in his mouth and shut him up,” Marquardt said following a short workout. “That’d be nice. He’s an ass, he’s a total punk, just no respect. I don’t like Bisping.”
LAS VEGAS — UFC president Dana White isn’t against testosterone replacement therapy on principal, he told reporters after Thursday afternoon’s UFC 132 pre-fight press conference, but all testosterone use isn’t equal in the boss’s eyes
NEWARK, NJ — This is the 
NEW YORK — After losing three fights in a row to top-flight competition during a one-year span, many thought 
NEWARK, N.J. —