F. Mir (photo) was caught in the doping test at UFC Fight Night 85. Photo: Josh Hedges/UFC
More than a year after being provisionally suspended after being caught in an anti-doping test, Frank mir met his punishment. The former UFC heavyweight champion was removed from MMA for two years by USADA. However, as the penalty is retroactive to April 2016, when he was punished for the first time, Mir will be able to return to the octagon in April 2018.
See too
The North American was caught in a test carried out during the competition period after being knocked out by Mark Hunt at UFC Fight Night 85, held in Brisbane, Australia, in March last year. The substance found in the tests was Turinabol, an anabolic steroid that increases the athlete's strength with minimal weight gain in the process.
Mir claims his innocence and says the substance could have been in the kangaroo meat he ate during his stay in Australia. In his defense, the former champion attached articles in which steroids were given to cattle for slaughter as a possible cause for his test to be positive. Before learning of his sentence, he even claimed that, if he received a two-year suspension, he would retire from the sport. Mir criticized USADA and the UFC for their treatment of fighters.
“As a US citizen, I really believe in the saying “innocent until proven guilty”. USADA is a little different, they believe in “guilty until proven guilty”. I'm not complaining, but it's a pain to be on the athlete's side at these times. Their only job is to test athletes. They have all the power and the athletes have none”, said Mir, in an interview reproduced by the North American website “MMA Junkie”.
Comments