The United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) has released a statement acknowledging adverse findings in a drug test administered to former UFC bantamweight champion T.J. Dillashaw from January.
Early Wednesday morning, Dillashaw revealed that he had been flagged for a potential doping violation and decided to voluntarily surrender his UFC bantamweight title. The testing surrounded Dillashaw’s last fight against Henry Cejudo at UFC Fight Night from Brooklyn in January.
The New York State Athletic Commission suspended Dillashaw for one year retroactive to Jan. 19 and fined him $10,000 for the positive drug test.
Under the new rules of the UFC’s anti-doping policy, USADA doesn’t reveal information about a potential doping violation until the adjudication process has been completed or the athlete makes a public statement regarding the situation.
In this case, Dillashaw publicly declared that he had been flagged for a potential violation while also announcing that he was relinquishing the bantamweight title so USADA has now responded with a statement of their own.
“In light of Mr. Dillashaw’s social media post this morning, we can confirm that an in-competition test conducted by USADA on January 18, 2019 resulted in an adverse analytical finding,” USADA officials wrote.
“In this instance, we are able to confirm the finding due to Mr. Dillashaw’s public statement. The presumption of innocence under the rules is a vital part of an effective anti-doping program and it’s only fair that Mr. Dillashaw be allowed due process before any conclusions are drawn.”
Based on USADA’s statement, the adjudication process regarding Dillashaw still hasn’t been completed yet. That means he could face additional sanctions from USADA above and beyond the one-year suspension he received from the state of the New York.
As of now, Dillashaw will be out until at least January 2019 but could potentially face a longer suspension from USADA.
The UFC has made no public statement regarding Dillashaw or their plans for the bantamweight title now that he has given up the belt.
