Undefeated UFC Fighter Becomes First To Receive Lifetime Ban
Ruslan Magomedov (3-0 in UFC and 14-1 in his MMA career) just became not only the first UFC fighter but the first undefeated UFC fighter to receive a lifetime ban.
The U.S. Anti Doping Agency announced Magomedov’s sanction Monday.
The 32-year-old Russian national has not fought in the UFC since 2015, mostly because of a drug test he failed Oct. 7, 2016.
That violation, which drew a two-year suspension, kept Magomedov out of action through at least October 2018.
But just as he was set to once again become eligible to fight again, Magomedov submitted a urine sample on Oct. 10, 2018, that tested positive for an organic chemistry textbook, according to the USADA.
Specifically, Magomedov’s urine contained, according to the USADA announcement, “methyltestosterone metabolite 17α-methyl-5β-androstan-3α, 17β-diol, as well as stanozolol metabolites 3’-hydroxystanozolol-O-glucuronide, 16β-hydroxystanozolol-O-glucuronide, and stanozolol-N-glucuronide.”
Methyltestosterone is a synthetic form of the world’s manliest chemical, while stanozolol is the home run juice found in the urine of many a baseball player during the 1990s and 2000s.
Both are on the banned substance list for just about every sports league under the sun, including the UFC, which follows the World Anti-Doping Agency guidelines.
The failed test in October was Magomedov’s second violation.
His third violation, which invoked the three-strikes-you’re-out USADA rule and led to the lifetime ban, came on Feb. 5 when Magomedov refused to submit a sample for an out-of-competition test.
And much like refusing to take a field sobriety test gets you an automatic drunken driving citation in many locales, refusing to take a drug test get you a positive result in the records for combat sports.
The USADA said exactly that in a statement: “Refusing or failing to submit to sample collection, without compelling justification, is a doping violation under the UFC Anti-Doping Policy.”
Some MMA fans called out what they view as a different standard for Magomedov compared with light heavyweight champion Jon Jones.
Magomedov does it: Lifetime ban.
Jon Jones does it: “Don’t worry we’ll just move it to Cali they won’t care”
— x-Goose (@InfantGoose6565) April 1, 2019
Rumour has it Ruslan Magomedov licked Jon Jones’ forehead. #UFC #USADA
— Tricky ??????? (@trickyduncan) April 1, 2019
It’s worth pointing out, however, that Jones’ drug suspension was under suspicious circumstances and was largely regarded as a regulatory failure on the part of the Nevada commission rather than the fairly blatant steroid use revealed in Magomedov’s drug test.
Before he fought in UFC, Magomedov’s other 12 pro fights, including his lone loss, came on the Russian club circuit, and it’s entirely possible that the disgraced fighter will simply take his talents to the questionable jurisdictions outside the UFC’s purview.
But as far as the big-time, big-money world of top-flight MMA is concerned, Magomedov’s career is — barring an overturned test on appeal to whoever may have jurisdiction in this instance, even if it’s Dana White himself — over.
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