A series of fighters have failed a test for clenbuterol, administered by the US Anti-Doping Agency, the UFC’s independent PED testing arm.
Bantamweight Ning Guangyou of China tested positive for clenbuterol in a test given in May, but will not face sanction. Likewise, UFC welterweight Augusto Montano tested positive for clenbuterol in an out-of-competition drug test, but after an investigation, USADA determined the Mexico City, Mexico based fighter will receive no sanction for the failure.
It was announced on Friday that a third fighter who tested for positive for clenbuterol, Li Jingliang, from Xinjiang, China, will also face no sanction.
Via USADA.org.
USADA announced today that UFC athlete Li Jingliang has tested positive for a prohibited substance, which was determined to have been ingested by him without fault or negligence.
Jingliang, 28, tested positive for trace amounts of clenbuterol as the result of an out-of-competition urine sample he provided on May 18, 2016. Clenbuterol is an Anabolic Agent prohibited at all times under the UFC Anti-Doping Policy, which has adopted the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Prohibited List. Consistent with numerous prior reported cases globally, the issue of illicit administration of clenbuterol to animals destined for food production can result in, under specific conditions, a positive sample from an athlete. WADA has issued specific warnings about this problem in China and Mexico. To USADA’s knowledge, positive tests resulting from meat contamination issues are rare outside of those two countries. Moreover, due to strict regulatory and meat certification practices, USADA is not aware of any instances in which an athlete’s sample tested positive for clenbuterol after consumption of meat produced in the U.S.
During its investigation into the circumstances that led to the positive test, USADA interviewed Jingliang and reviewed all available relevant evidence, including Jingliang’s whereabouts, dietary habits, and the laboratory reports demonstrating very low parts per billion concentrations of the prohibited substance in the athlete’s urine sample. USADA concluded that the presence of clenbuterol in the athlete’s sample very likely resulted from clenbuterol contaminated meat consumed in China. As a result, Jingliang will not face a period of ineligibility for his positive test. Furthermore, Jingliang’s competitive results from his bout on The Ultimate Fighter Finale card have not been disqualified because a sample collected in connection with that bout on July 8, 2016, by the Nevada State Athletic Commission was reported as negative.
While the risk of consuming clenbuterol-tainted meat and testing positive for an athlete is extremely small, consistent with past athlete advisories, USADA reminds athletes to use the utmost care if eating meat in known high risk countries, including Mexico and China. In line with WADA recommendations, USADA will continue to assess the presence of clenbuterol in an athlete’s sample on a case by case basis, taking into account all the evidence supporting the likelihood of such contamination.
However, because the test failure was in proximity to a fight with Anton Zafir on July 8 in Las Vegas, it also fell under the jurisdiction of the Nevada Athletic Commission. The NAC has temporarily suspended Jingliang, and will require the fighter to go before a board to further determine what happened. Even though USADA has decided not to the sanction the fighter, the NAC could, in theory, suspend him.
A fourth fighter, California-based bantamweight Francisco Rivera also tested positive for clenbuterol, just this month, and has been provisionally suspended, pending a full investigation. The fighter reports that he was in Mexico on vacation recently, and cited contaminated meat there as the likely origin of the failure.
