Tag: elevated testosterone

Lavar Johnson Has a Rather Bizarre Explanation for That Failed Drug Test of His


(Awwwwwwwww yeeeaaaaaah. GIF via TheBigLead)

Lavar Johnson‘s once-promising UFC career ended in the least respectable way possible: a boring lay-and-pray loss at the hands of Brendan Schaub at UFC 157, followed by a failed drug test for elevated testosterone, which resulted in Johnson’s release from the promotion and a nine-month suspension from the California State Athletic Commission. But according to “Big,” his botched test wasn’t the result of your everyday anabolic steroid use. The truth is, Johnson got on testosterone replacement therapy in the lead-up to the fight, as a way to combat fatigue and repeated injuries in training, but didn’t disclose it to the CSAC because he figured he’d get away with it. See? Totally different than cheating. As he explained yesterday on The MMA Hour:

“What happened was basically I was on TRT, I just didn’t disclose it to the athletic commission. It was my mistake. I was taking such little amounts; me and my doctor didn’t think anything was going to pop up, like it’s no big deal. I guess any time you’re taking any kind of testosterone it’s going to show on the test. So that’s basically what I got popped for.

“You know, if you take steroids they’ll suspend you for a year. I wasn’t taking steroids. I was prescribed [TRT] by a doctor. They suspended me for nine months, and I ended up showing them my prescription from my doctor and everything. They ended up reducing it to six months. That was it. Unfortunately I got released from the UFC, and messed up the good opportunity.”

Two questions immediately come to mind: 1) Who the hell is Lavar Johnson’s doctor? He “didn’t think anything was going to pop up, like it’s no big deal”? “I guess any time you’re taking any kind of testosterone it’s going to show on the test”?? Are you fucking kidding me? What did they think was going to happen to Johnson’s testosterone levels when he started taking TRT?


(Awwwwwwwww yeeeaaaaaah. GIF via TheBigLead)

Lavar Johnson‘s once-promising UFC career ended in the least respectable way possible: a boring lay-and-pray loss at the hands of Brendan Schaub at UFC 157, followed by a failed drug test for elevated testosterone, which resulted in Johnson’s release from the promotion and a nine-month suspension from the California State Athletic Commission. But according to “Big,” his botched test wasn’t the result of your everyday anabolic steroid use. The truth is, Johnson got on testosterone replacement therapy in the lead-up to the fight, as a way to combat fatigue and repeated injuries in training, but didn’t disclose it to the CSAC because he figured he’d get away with it. See? Totally different than cheating. As he explained yesterday on The MMA Hour:

“What happened was basically I was on TRT, I just didn’t disclose it to the athletic commission. It was my mistake. I was taking such little amounts; me and my doctor didn’t think anything was going to pop up, like it’s no big deal. I guess any time you’re taking any kind of testosterone it’s going to show on the test. So that’s basically what I got popped for.

“You know, if you take steroids they’ll suspend you for a year. I wasn’t taking steroids. I was prescribed [TRT] by a doctor. They suspended me for nine months, and I ended up showing them my prescription from my doctor and everything. They ended up reducing it to six months. That was it. Unfortunately I got released from the UFC, and messed up the good opportunity.”

Two questions immediately come to mind: 1) Who the hell is Lavar Johnson’s doctor? He “didn’t think anything was going to pop up, like it’s no big deal”? “I guess any time you’re taking any kind of testosterone it’s going to show on the test”?? Are you fucking kidding me? What did they think was going to happen to Johnson’s testosterone levels when he started taking TRT?

And 2) Dude, are you sure you want to admit all of this in a public forum? Johnson didn’t disclose the TRT because he knew it was, on some level, cheating. Maybe he wouldn’t have even been able to obtain an official exemption, because then he’d have to prove a need for it, which might have been non-existent. Essentially, his explanation is “I only took a little bit of it because I thought I wouldn’t get caught. Oh well, lesson learned.”

Of course, none of this matters to Bellator, who signed the 36-year-old last month for its Season Nine Heavyweight Tournament, which begins this Friday. Johnson will be facing former UFC embarrassment Vinicius Queiroz in the semis, and says he’ll be off the TRT for it:

“I just don’t even want to take the chance or anything. I’m just going to ride out my career natural. If I get hurt, or if I can’t compete with these guys, then I just won’t fight.

“A lot of people look down on [TRT]. I don’t want to be that guy. I don’t want people to think I need it to be a good fighter to compete with these guys. I’ve been knocking people out since I was like 14 years old. If I can’t compete, and I keep getting injured, then I’ll just be done.”

Lavar Johnson’s Post-UFC 157 Drug Test Comes Back Positive for Elevated Testosterone


(Image via Esther Lin/MMAFighting.com)

UFC heavyweight Lavar Johnson — who directly inspired our “Will You Be Fired…” flowchart by not getting fired following his UFC 157 loss to Brendan Schaub — caught a bit of bad news yesterday. The California State Athletic Commission revealed (via MMAJunkie) that Johnson’s post-fight drug test at the February 23rd event was flagged for elevated levels of testosterone. A follow-up carbon isotope ratio test “confirmed the testosterone was consistent with the administration of a steroid.”

No word yet on what that steroid was specifically or how high his T-levels were, but damn Lavar, you in troubllllllle. A suspension and fine are likely imminent, and the failed test could eliminate the good-will that Johnson has built up with his employers by always coming to bang.

It’s also noteworthy that Johnson’s drug test involved a carbon isotope ratio test, which “examines the atomic make-up of testosterone in the urine to determine if it is natural or synthetic.” The UFC has drawn some criticism in the past for not using this effective method of catching cheaters. Is the promotion about to get tougher in its anti-doping efforts? And could this be related to Dana White’s recent vow to “test the [expletive]” out of TRT abusers? We’ll update you when we know more…


(Image via Esther Lin/MMAFighting.com)

UFC heavyweight Lavar Johnson — who directly inspired our “Will You Be Fired…” flowchart by not getting fired following his UFC 157 loss to Brendan Schaub — caught a bit of bad news yesterday. The California State Athletic Commission revealed (via MMAJunkie) that Johnson’s post-fight drug test at the February 23rd event was flagged for elevated levels of testosterone. A follow-up carbon isotope ratio test “confirmed the testosterone was consistent with the administration of a steroid.”

No word yet on what that steroid was specifically or how high his T-levels were, but damn Lavar, you in troubllllllle. A suspension and fine are likely imminent, and the failed test could eliminate the good-will that Johnson has built up with his employers by always coming to bang.

It’s also noteworthy that Johnson’s drug test involved a carbon isotope ratio test, which “examines the atomic make-up of testosterone in the urine to determine if it is natural or synthetic.” The UFC has drawn some criticism in the past for not using this effective method of catching cheaters. Is the promotion about to get tougher in its anti-doping efforts? And could this be related to Dana White’s recent vow to “test the [expletive]” out of TRT abusers? We’ll update you when we know more…