WWE star CM Punk made his pro MMA debut at UFC 203 back in 2016. Punks debut was shut down in the first round by Mickey Gall with a submission victory. Two years later, CM Punk made his return to the octagon where he faced Mike Jackson at UFC 225. The outcome was very much […]
WWE star CM Punk made his pro MMA debut at UFC 203 back in 2016. Punks debut was shut down in the first round by Mickey Gall with a submission victory.
Two years later, CM Punk made his return to the octagon where he faced Mike Jackson at UFC 225. The outcome was very much no different, whilst CM Punk was able to go the distance with Jackson he was once again outperformed. Leaving CM Punks MMA record 2-0 with a disappointed White insisting that this would be the last time we would see Punk in the UFC.
Even though he managed to make it out of the first round and go the distance, White had still been left unimpressed.
“He got clipped a lot in that fight, it looked like he was hurt bad a couple of times.”
“I love the guy. He’s the nicest guy in the world. We gave him two shots. He had a lot of heart tonight, yeah, I think he should call it a wrap” (H/T BJPenn.com)
Since the loss at UFC 225, CM Punk has found his record updated. MMAJunkie confirmed through a Freedom of Information Act request and confirmation that Punks loss to Jackson had since been overturned.
According to the report from the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, Jackson had tested positive for tetrahydrocannabinol, a chemical found in marijuana. It has been confirmed that Jackson had been penalized however the news of the result being overturned had only been confirmed recently.
Official Statement Released:
“The official result of a full contact martial arts bout can be changed to a ‘No Contest’” if there is “an adverse post-bout disciplinary finding against a contestant”, Chris Slaby of the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation had told MMAJunkie this Wednesday. “As detailed in the consent order provided, Mr. Jackson tested positive for tetrahydrocannabinol due to marijuana following the June 9, 2018 UFC event”. (H/T MMAJunkie)
Punk and Jackson have yet to fight in the UFC again. Whilst it is known that we may never see Punk fight again, Jackson had been scheduled to face Dean Barry this year, however that fight is yet to come to fruition.
Do you think this loss overturned will mean a potential return for CM?
A failed drug test has forced Sean O’Malley off UFC 229. The rising bantamweight star announced on Instagram tonight (Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018) that he had failed a USADA-mandated drug test. The failure forced him off of his scheduled bout with Jose Quiñonez at this weekend’s UFC 229. The UFC recently announced some changes to […]
A failed drug test has forced Sean O’Malley off UFC 229.
The rising bantamweight star announced on Instagram tonight (Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018) that he had failed a USADA-mandated drug test. The failure forced him off of his scheduled bout with Jose Quiñonez at this weekend’s UFC 229.
The UFC recently announced some changes to their current drug testing partnership with USADA. Perhaps the biggest change came in the form of fighter failures not being announced until their case was resolved. This was due to cases involving unintentional use tarnishing fighters’ reputations.
O’Malley said he’s currently dealing with such a case himself. He wanted to get ahead of the game as a result. ‘Sugar’ announced his current issue to fans. He claims he’s identified the dietary supplement which caused the failure:
O’Malley is maybe the UFC’s fastest-rising star at the lower weight divisions. He calls this setback only a “speed bump on the way to greatness,” but this is certain to be more than that as a result.
The well-liked prospect has built a large following in his first full year on the official UFC roster. He was fighting on by far his biggest card at UFC 229. Conor McGregor will be facing Khabib Nurmagomedov in the main event. It’s tough to get a better card on which to gain exposure.
O’Malley is a highly-publicized user of marijuana. It’s unknown whether or not his failed drug test involves the oft-discussed use of cannabis. His words make it seem like it’s more of a performance-enhancing drug issue due to a tainted supplement.
He admitted he wanted to as open as possible even though his failure would have remained private under the new rules:
“Even though under the new policy, my case would not be public right now, I feel it’s important to be upfront and honest with my fans,” O’Malley wrote. … “We’ve sent remaining samples from the bottle I took to the USADA lab and [sic] as well as a full-sized bottle. I’m told the testing of these supplements can take as long as 30 days.”
“Sugar” won all three of his UFC bouts thus far. His most recent was a decision win over Andre Soukhamthath in March. He broke his foot and has been out since. His return on the UFC’s biggest-ever card will never materialize.
Another big-name talent is on the sidelines due to USADA regardless. Let’s hope it’s not for too long.
Today, the UFC vocalized their extreme displeasure with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR), who recently botched Cortney Casey’s most recent drug test. While Casey initially tested false-positive, the TDLR eventually reversed that finding, but the damage to her reputation had already been done. The UFC voiced their concerns with athletic commissions nationwide lacking […]
Today, the UFC vocalized their extreme displeasure with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR), who recently botched Cortney Casey’s most recent drug test.
While Casey initially tested false-positive, the TDLR eventually reversed that finding, but the damage to her reputation had already been done.
The UFC voiced their concerns with athletic commissions nationwide lacking a cohesive testing strategies, imploring them to utilize USADA instead.
“UFC has made it very clear that it takes anti-doping very seriously, instituting the most comprehensive anti-doping program in sports. One of the keys to this program, and any effective, world-class program, is ensuring that all athletes are treated to proper due process.
“UFC strawweight Cortney Casey’s recent case, stemming from her fight in Dallas on May 13, 2017, is a perfect example of the type of negative and damaging backlash for an athlete resulting from a false-positive. There is no better example than this for the need to have proper due process and testing in combat sports and professional sports anti-doping.
“Following the results of the additional tests at the WADA accredited laboratory, proving that Cortney did not cheat nor break any rules, UFC is requesting that the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) immediately reverse its ruling and exonerate Cortney of any wrongdoing.
“UFC has offered, and continues to offer Texas and any other Commission and regulatory body around the world, the world-class expertise and experience of USADA, to assist them in properly carrying out anti-doping efforts in their state or country.”
Three fighters have tested positive for marijuana following UFC and are now facing sanctions from the state of Texas, but curiously not USADA. Curtis Blaydes, Niko Price, and Abel Trujillo all tested positive for marijuana during in-competition screenings for their respective fights in Houston last weekend. All three have been fined $1,000 and suspended for
Three fighters have tested positive for marijuana following UFC and are now facing sanctions from the state of Texas, but curiously not USADA.
Curtis Blaydes, Niko Price, and Abel Trujillo all tested positive for marijuana during in-competition screenings for their respective fights in Houston last weekend. All three have been fined $1,000 and suspended for 90 days by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, according to MMAFighting.com.
Both Blaydes and Price picked up wins at UFC Fight Night 104, with Blaydes defeating Adam Milstead via TKO due to a leg injury, while Price knocked out Alex Morono at the end of the second round. Both Blaydes and Price’s victories have now been overturned to no contests following the failed tests, as reported by MiketheTruth.com.
Trujillo lost to James Vick by third round submission.
According to a USADA spokesman, USADA only suspends fighters for marijuana if they test higher than 150 ng/ml of the substance’s metabolites, which comes from the World Anti-Doping Agency Code. As of Friday, it remains unclear what levels each fighter tested positive for in their system.
Greg Alvarez, the director of Texas Combative Sports, declined to comment on the matter.
None of the three fighters who tested positive for marijuana have commented either as of Friday.
The no contests put Blaydes at 1-1 (1) and Price at 1-0 (1) for their respective UFC records.
If you hadn’t noticed by now, Nick Diaz is something of an anomaly. He says he hates fighting, yet it’s seemingly all he understands. He both fights too much and not enough to support his family…that he hopes to one day acquire. He is both a laid-back stoner and the drunk guy at the bar who will smack you for looking at him the wrong way. He has no belief, but he believes, he’s a walking contradiction (and he ain’t got no riiiiiiiiiight).
So it more or less falls in line with Diaz’s way of thinking that he would take a two-year break from the sport that has given him everything, complain about how little said sport has given him, rejoin the workforce, and be forced right back out of a job on account of his own willing incompetence. Does that make any sense? It shouldn’t.
The point is, Diaz pulled the equivalent of a hit-and-run on the UFC when he once again failed a post-fight drug test for marijuana. And today, NSAC test results confirm that he wasn’t even trying to hide it in the weeks prior to UFC 183.
If you hadn’t noticed by now, Nick Diaz is something of an anomaly. He says he hates fighting, yet it’s seemingly all he understands. He both fights too much and not enough to support his family…that he hopes to one day acquire. He is both a laid-back stoner and the drunk guy at the bar who will smack you for looking at him the wrong way. He has no belief, but he believes, he’s a walking contradiction (and he ain’t got no riiiiiiiiiight).
So it more or less falls in line with Diaz’s way of thinking that he would take a two-year break from the sport that has given him everything, complain about how little said sport has given him, rejoin the workforce, and be forced right back out of a job on account of his own willing incompetence. Does that make any sense? It shouldn’t.
The point is, Diaz pulled the equivalent of a hit-and-run on the UFC when he once again failed a post-fight drug test for marijuana. And today, NSAC test results confirm that he wasn’t even trying to hide it in the weeks prior to UFC 183.
According to NSAC Executive Director Bob Bennett,, the marijuana metabolites in Diaz’s urine sample “were measured at 300 nanograms per milliliter (ng/ml). The level is double the 150 ng/mL limit set in 2013 after the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and NSAC raised its testing threshold.”
Of course, this might explain why Diaz wasn’t even licensed to fight Silva until three days prior to UFC 183. (via MMAJunkie):
Bennett said Diaz had also risked not being licensed for the event when he did not provide a clean drug test to the commission per a previous suspension for marijuana.
“I want to say that around (Jan.) 28th, I notified the UFC that he would not be able to fight unless we got a test that showed he was clean,” Bennett said.
Diaz (26-10 MMA, 7-7 UFC) was cleared to fight Silva (34-6 MMA, 17-2 UFC) at the Jan. 31 event, which took place at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand Garden Arena and aired on pay-per-view. His license reportedly came after he took several drug tests given to him by his camp.
Translation: Diaz had someone in his camp who wasn’t high as sh*t take his piss test for him, while the NSAC did what they always do and looked the other way.
Speaking of contradictions, just wait until you hear Diaz’s longtime coach, Cesar Gracie, try to both explain away Diaz’s test results while confirming that Diaz puffs more ganja than George Clinton.
In an interview with MMAJunkie, Gracie stated that, “My understanding was he passed the test, then he fought and then after he passed the test, he did not smoke. The exertion of the fight affected the test and that’s why [Diaz] tested positive,” which is nothing short mind-blowing in the absolute lack of basic science it displays. But even more hilarious was Gracie’s subsequent admission to MMAFighting that Diaz’s positive test was “not a shocker.”
“His DNA is THC, let’s face it,” said Gracie. “No one is surprised by that. I’m disappointed by it. It’s just a distraction. It sucks. I don’t want any distractions. The guy is such a brilliant fighter. I’d rather be talking about how skilled he is.”
Look, I’m not trying to vilify Diaz for his marijuana usage, especially in light of the fact that he was training to fight a juiced-up version of the G.O.A.T at the time. Marijuana shouldn’t be illegal, MMA fighters should be allowed to use it recreationally if it helps relieve pain, blah blah blah, etc. But can we just drop it with the act already? The NSAC needed a clean sample from Diaz in order to license him, which he could not provide, so he did what he had to do in order to keep the fight on. Just like the NSAC did when they found out Silva was on PED’s a month out from his fight, because you best believe they knew it prior to UFC 183.
Diaz didn’t stop smoking for a few days, then pass a test, then go back to smoking. That is not how marijuana metabolites are stored in the body, and everyone knows it. There is no way in Hell that Diaz gave enough fucks to try and hide his usage prior to UFC 183 — I offer the video at the top of this article as proof of this — so please, Anderson, Nick, Bob, Francisco, can we stop throwing our hands in the air and pleading ignorance on all this? The Ultimate Roided Fucking Killers League is the future of this sport. Let’s embrace the crazy.
While there’s been a lot of hubbub (rightfully) made about Jon Jones’ positive test for cocaine and the Nevada State Athletic Commission’s subsequent bumblefucking of his case, it’s taken (some of) us a couple days to see another, perhaps greater abnormality in Jones’ sample. Also, I just used hubbub and bumblefuck in the same sentence and probably deserve some kind of award for that.
As you already know, Jones’ two tests on December 4th both came back positive for traces of cocaine metabolites, with his follow-up test on the 18th coming back clean. All three tests, however, showed significantly lower than usual levels of testosterone, which for a young athlete of Jones’ level is unusual to say the very least.
Jones’ first test (the “watery” sample) is pictured above. As you can see, Jones’ testosterone levels measured at 59ng/dL, and his epitestosterone levels measured at 170ng/dL. This raises several red flags, as the range for epitestosterone is usually similar to that of testosterone (hence the 1:1 T/E ratio that is considered normal). Jones’ second and third tests are after the jump.
Now, there are a few possible explanations as to why Jones’ T/E ratio could come back so abnormal…
While there’s been a lot of hubbub (rightfully) made about Jon Jones’ positive test for cocaine and the Nevada State Athletic Commission’s subsequent bumblefucking of his case, it’s taken (some of) us a couple days to see another, perhaps greater abnormality in Jones’ sample. Also, I just used hubbub and bumblefuck in the same sentence and probably deserve some kind of award for that.
As you already know, Jones’ two tests on December 4th both came back positive for traces of cocaine metabolites, with his follow-up test on the 18th coming back clean. All three tests, however, showed significantly lower than usual levels of testosterone, which for a young athlete of Jones’ level is unusual to say the very least.
Jones’ first test (the “watery” sample) is pictured above. As you can see, Jones’ testosterone levels measured at 59ng/dL, and his epitestosterone levels measured at 170ng/dL. This raises several red flags, as the range for epitestosterone is usually similar to that of testosterone (hence the 1:1 T/E ratio that is considered normal). Jones’ second and third tests are after the jump.
Now, there are a few possible explanations as to why Jones’ T/E ratio could come back so abnormal…(as BloodyElbow’s Iain Kidd theorizes):
What possible explanations are there for such odd results? Well for the low testosterone there are plenty. The normal levels are those taken first thing in the morning. If Jon Jones was tested late in the day, his levels would be slightly lower than normal anyway. If the tests came after a strenuous training session, this would lower them even further. Certain drugs, especially opiate based painkillers, can also have a very significant, though temporary, effect on testosterone levels and production.
I am personally unaware of any natural reason for epitestosterone to be so much higher than testosterone. Readings such as this are typically seen as red flags for drug testing agencies, as exogenous epitestosterone (that is, epitestosterone administered from an external source, not produced naturally by the body) is banned due to its use as a masking agent. Athletes were using epitestosterone to ensure their T:E ratios would not be too high on standard urine tests, leading to the ban by WADA and other organisations.
As every website reporting on these levels have noted, none of these explanations should be considered fact until all the information is out there. Considering that NSAC executive director Bob Bennett told reporters yesterday that the lab responsible for testing Jones might *also* have screwed up in regards to what he was actually tested for, it’s too early to really start lobbing any potentially libelous claims Jones’ way.
Jones’ second test is below. Although his T levels had risen to a much more normal 180ng/dL, note his higher-than-average 610ng/dL E levels.
His December 18th test, on the other hand, still shows a lower-than normal 180ng/dL, but his epitestosterone levels are off the charts at 2000ng/dL.
So what does this mean? Well, at the risk of being forced to print another retraction, we’ll just say that the results possibly indicate that an external/synthetic form of epitestosterone could be behind Jones’ abnormal samples. But as Kidd continues:
It has to be noted that urine testing for testosterone levels is significantly less accurate than blood testing. All three tests appear to be urine tests only. It’s also possible that the concentration/dilution of Jones’ urine mean his levels look abnormal. It should not affect the relative ratio of testosterone to epitestosterone, though. Nor do I believe it would explain the drastic change in epitestosterone level between his December 4th and December 18th test, since his testosterone levels do not show the same rate of increase.
Of course, there’s an easy way to put all of these rumors to rest, as Dr. Johnny Benjamin and Victor Conte have both pointed out on Twitter. By using a carbon isotope test on Jones’s stored samples, NSAC would be able to accurately determine if he was using synthetic testosterone or epitestosterone, which could result in an even bigger shitstorm for the much-troubled champion. Of course, the NSAC being NSAC, these tests will likely never happen. Which…
Again, we will hopefully have more definitive answers regarding Jones’ case when the NSAC meets next Monday.
Related: Oh, had we forgotten to mention that there’s a possibility that Jones perjured himself while speaking in front of the commission back in September? Because yeah, that too (via MMAFighting):
Jon Jones told the Nevada Athletic Commission (NAC) in September that he lost his Nike endorsement due to a brawl he had with Daniel Cormier during a press event in the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
Last week, Jones backtracked from that statement and now the Nevada deputy attorney general is reviewing whether or not Jones perjured himself under oath at the hearing, MMAFighting.com has learned.
NAC executive director Bob Bennett said the commission is aware of Jones’ comments prior to UFC 182 and the matter has been sent up the ladder.
“They’re considering it for review,” Bennett said. “It’s nothing new to us.
“It would be concerning if anyone lied during testimony.”
According to Jones himself, he “definitely worded it wrong.”
“Nike did not drop me because of that fight and I kind of owe an apology to Nike for saying they dropped me because of the fight.” said Jones during a media conference call. “They actually didn’t. Nike has been known to support its athletes through much worse things than a brawl in the middle of MGM [Grand].”
So basically, I’ve just used a lot of words to describe the past couple months of Jon Jones’ life, when it can all be summed up in a 3-minute song.
Just a speed bump on the way to greatness.
