(“Who nearly f*cked up our end-of-year show main event? This f*cking guy, that’s who.”)
During a scheduled Nevada State Athletic Commission meeting Monday, NSAC announced that Alistair Overeem failed to undergo a random drug test ahead of his UFC 141 heavyweight bout with Brock Lesnar and as a result he was granted a “conditional license” by the governing body.
According to commission records, Lesnar attended a hospital within one day of being told to do so on November 17, where blood and urine samples were taken and the results came back negative for both drugs of abuse and anabolic agents. Overeem did not comply with its request to submit specimens on that date, but instead had one of the two requested samples taken one week later.
Prior to the agenda item, the announcement was foreshadowed as NSAC representatives spoke candidly about all of the issues that have arisen in the past when it comes to testing out of competition outside of North America for various reasons.
Props to @LayzietheSavage for the UStream feed of the proceedings.
Here is the timeline of what went down the past month.
• On the November 17 NSAC executive director Keith Kizer called and requested the testing of both fighters.
• Lesnar’s manager immediately called back and asked if it was okay to have the samples taken at a local hospital and was given the green light to do so.
• Overeem’s manager did not return Kizer’s call until the 21st and informed Kizer that Alistair had returned to Holland between the time of the original call and the call from his manager.
• By the time Alistair went to his physician and had a sample taken, it was the 23rd of November, but when the results came back one week later it was discovered that he failed to undergo a required urine test.
• By the timeline given NSAC, concluded that Alistair did not duck the test as he would have been on his way to the airport for his flight home when his manager was called about the test.
• Overeem failed to drop off a urine sample by the date requested (December 2) and finally gave one five days later.
• Alistair blamed the issue on his mother becoming ill and the difference of testing procedures used in the U.S.
• He admitted that the samples were taken by Overeem’s own “sports doctor.”
• Overeem decided to return to Holland after he filmed the UFC 141 Countdown show.
• He claims that he didn’t know about the drug testing request until two or three days after Kizer called his manager, which he clarified is actually his assistant, and that he was not told that he needed to do a urine sample.
• He says he was confused about what the requirements were and that his doctor needed to call around to find a place to have the tests done.
• He bought his plane ticket two days prior to the day he left to go home.
• Alistair said he has given a urine test before when randomly tested and tested after past bouts.
• Assistant Jacob Lamb says they did nothing deceitful and that they thought they were submitting the proper testing protocols.
When all was said and done, NSAC officials after deliberating briefly, granted Overeem’s special “conditional license,” as they collectively felt it was “inappropriate” to deny his license request because of the incident. The main condition, besides that his outstanding urine sample come back clean, are that he submit two random drug tests within the next six months as requested by the commission.
Alistair and the UFC dodged a bullet with this one. Hopefully he doesn’t screw up one of his conditions.
