Penne first UFC flagged for test following ABP review

In addition to direct blood and urine anti-doping tests, UFC fighters are also subject to indirect testing via an Athlete Biological Passport (ABP). This is an individual record of selected biological parameters collated over a period of time. Doping violations are detected not by testing for and identifying illegal substances, but rather by noting variances from an athlete’s established levels outside permissible limits. This data can be an indication of doping in and of itself, or can be the basis for further, targeted anti-doping tests.

UFC women’s strawweight Jessica Penne has now become the first fighter to have a test flagged due to her ABP. Via UFC.com.

The UFC organization was notified today that the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) has informed Jessica Penne of a potential Anti-Doping Policy violation stemming from an out-of-competition sample collected on March 20, 2017. Penne’s sample, having undergone the standard out-competition analysis menu, was initially reported to USADA as negative. However, upon review of Penne’s Athlete Biological Passport, the sample was subsequently flagged for additional analysis due to an increased degree of variability in urinary biomarkers measured in the sample. As a result of that further analysis, the presence of a prohibited substance was detected. Before the reanalysis was completed, Penne fought at the UFC Fight Night event in Nashville on April 22, 2017.

USADA, the independent administrator of the UFC Anti-Doping Policy, will handle the results management and appropriate adjudication of this case involving Penne. Under the UFC Anti-Doping Policy, there is a full and fair legal process that is afforded to all athletes before any sanctions are imposed. Because the Tennessee Athletic Commission was the regulatory body overseeing the fight in Nashville, USADA will also work to ensure that the Commission has the necessary information to determine its proper judgment of Penne’s potential anti-doping violation. Additional information will be provided at the appropriate time as the process moves forward.

So Penne’s issue is not that her levels are outside of normal, but rather that her levels were outside of normal which triggered further testing, which she failed. As noted, and as the history of USADA testing in the UFC clearly demonstrates, simply failing a test does not necessarily indicate cheating. Thus the fighter should be given the benefit of the doubt until a more final determination is made.