MMA | A blow to the UFC! He will lose his anti-doping partner. The end of pure sport, rages the Czech fighter

Many might ask what is actually behind the end of the cooperation. The answer is simple – Conor McGregor. The famous Irishman dropped out of the USADA anti-doping program more than two years ago due to a broken leg, and there was speculation when he would finally return to the testing “pool”. He apparently waited to return to the cage so that the UFC would give him an exception from the mandatory six-month stay in the program. In the past, for example, the controversial fighter Brock Lesnar received this.

One of the most famous fighters actually enrolled in the doping program in the previous days. “We can confirm that Conor has entered the USADA testing program as of Sunday, October 8, 2023,” CEO Travis Trygart said, adding that McGregor’s exemption from mandatory testing was not an option. “We clearly agreed with the UFC that the UFC should not grant Conor an exemption to fight until he has submitted two negative tests and been in the program for at least six months,” he continued, adding that the UFC was indeed considering another exemption.

BREAKING: USADA announces that Conor McGregor has re-entered the UFC’s anti-doping program and states that as of January 1, 2024, they will no longer be overseeing the UFC’s anti-doping program. pic.twitter.com/H4X3gITvzW

— Aaron Bronsteter (@aaronbronsteter) October 11, 2023

And if McGregor really had to wait another six months to return to the cage, then the expected comeback would extend at least until the beginning of April next year. But thanks to the end of the cooperation between USADA and the UFC, this may no longer apply. “We do not know if the UFC will honor the six-month or longer testing requirement, as USADA will no longer participate in the UFC’s anti-doping program as of January 1, 2024,” the report reads.

Relations between the two parties have not been ideal recently, so the starting point is understandable. “Relationships were too hectic and practically unsustainable. We are proud of the work we have done over the last eight years and how we have contributed to making this sport cleaner. We don’t know how things will work in the UFC starting next year, but that’s no longer our concern, sorry. The UFC’s move threatens the tremendous progress that has been made in the sport under the leadership of USADA,” Tygart continued.

The eight-year collaboration will thus end at the end of this year, and the question arises as to whether the world’s most famous fighting league will find an adequate solution by then to ensure doping controls for wrestlers. If this fails, the “purity” of the sport is at great risk. David Dvořák, one of the Czech representatives in the UFC, is well aware of this. “For me, it’s a huge mistake. In my opinion, it’s not such a problem that USADA wants a lot of money, but that famous names like Conor can’t wrestle like that,” he tells Sport.cz. On social networks, he adds: “Really disgusting. The end of USADA is also the end of clean sport.”