C. Sonnen (photo) was one of the main athletes to use TRT. Photo: Josh Hedges/UFC
A few hours after the announcement that his surprise doping test, carried out at the end of May, came back positive, Chael Sonnen spoke out for the first time on the subject. The American admitted to having ingested prohibited substances, but stated that he only did so due to the change in rules imposed by the Nevada Athletic Commission (NSAC) itself.
This Tuesday (10), the NSAC revealed that Sonnen's test contained anastrozole and clomiphene, two substances on the banned list of WADA, the World Anti-Doping Agency. The first is considered an aromatase inhibitor, also applied after steroid use; The second helps increase the body's production of testosterone.
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Due to his hypogonadism, Sonnen was a user of testosterone replacement therapy (TRT), a practice that was banned at the beginning of the year. In an interview with the North American radio “FOX Sports Radio”, the fighter attributed the presence of the substances in his body to the ban on TRT, as he needed to adapt to the new rules.
“They changed the regulations in Nevada, prohibiting TRT. And I was a user. So, we all had to go through a transition phase. To do this, I had to take some substances: one of them is called clomiphene and the other is hCG [human chorionic gonadotropin]. So, that's what I did. I took my team off the field in the meantime – as I wouldn't fight, I wouldn't ask for a leave of absence. You have to wait before you can cross the street,” Sonnen said.
“During this period, they gave me the [surprise anti-doping test, on May 24]. I tested positive for these substances, and that's what was supposed to happen. I took these substances, they were in my system. This was no surprise. They are not anabolic substances, they are not steroids, they are not PEDs [acronym, in English, for Performance Enhancing Drugs]. That's not it. But they claim that they are banned substances. In my case, I was out of competition. It wasn't something I presented on the day of the fight. I was out of competition because of a rule they changed. It was no secret that I had taken these substances. This is what you need to take when you stop taking TRT. It's something I need to live a healthy life. So basically they are telling me that I need to choose between being healthy or being a sportsman. It's a personal problem and I didn't want to share it with anyone, but I'm having fertility problems”, continued the fighter.
Due to the results of the exam, Sonnen must attend a hearing to provide the necessary clarifications. However, this is unlikely to happen before July 5th, when she would face Vitor belfort at UFC 175. “I get frustrated in that sense. They can hear me, they can agree with me, but, according to the rules, I need to go to the hearing. And who knows how many days that will take. I have a fight in 30 days, so there is no way the hearing will happen before then,” lamented Sonnen.
Originally, Sonnen was going to face Wanderlei Silva at UFC 175, but the Brazilian was removed from the fight for refusing to take a surprise anti-doping test. His replacement was Belfort, who is still not 100% guaranteed in the fight, as he needs to receive a license to fight in Las Vegas. The “Phenomenon” also failed a surprise anti-doping test held in February, before the ban on testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) in MMA.
This was the second time that Sonnen failed a drug test. In 2010, after his first fight against Anderson Silva, the North American was detected with a high level of epitestosterone in his body, which earned him a one-year suspension.
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