UFC strips Viscardi Andrade of win and fines him

UFC welterweight Viscardi Andrade failed a PED test administered shortly before wish decision win over Richard Walsh at UFC Fight Night 85: Hunt vs. Mir on March 20, 2016, in Brisbane, Australia. The test was administered by the US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) which conducts independent drug testing for the UFC.

USADA recently suspended Andrade for two years and the now the UFC has administered further punishment, changing his win to a No Contest and fining him, amount to be determined. Via MMAWeekly.

UFC was formally notified on Tuesday by USADA of the two-year sanction issued to Viscardi Andrade after testing positive for a prohibited substance. Andrade, 33, tested positive for stanozolol and its metabolites, 16β‐hydroxy‐stanozolol and 3’‐hydroxy‐stanozolol, following an out-of-competition urine test conducted on March 7, 2016.

Shortly after the collection of the sample leading to the positive results, Andrade participated in a bout against Richard Walsh on March 19, 2016, in (Brisbane), Australia, and was victorious. The positive laboratory results from the March 7, 2016 collection, and the resulting formal notification to UFC from USADA, were not completed until after the conclusion of the bout.

Pursuant to the UFC Anti-Doping Policy, an Anti-Doping Policy Violation occurring during, or in connection with, a bout may, upon the decision of UFC, lead to disqualification of the athlete’s bout result. Because the sample collection leading to the positive test occurred less than two weeks before the bout, Andrade’s results will be disqualified, his victory overturned, and the results of the bout for both Andrade and Walsh will be changed to a no-contest.

Additionally, under the UFC Anti-Doping Policy, the UFC may impose a fine on an athlete who commits an Anti-Doping Policy violation. Accordingly, a financial penalty will be imposed against Andrade at an amount to be determined. Per the UFC Anti-Doping Policy, forfeited compensation shall be applied to offset the costs of the Anti-Doping Program or given to anti-doping research.

There is often a degree of ambiguity in USADA test failures, and the source ends up being a tainted steak or a doctor-prescribed procedure with no intention to enhance performance. However, sometimes USADA actually catches a fighter taking steroids.

This was the case with Andrade, who was caught using stanozolol (Winstrol). The notorious steroid has allegedly been used by a number of athletes including:
•Ben Johnson (stripped of Olympic gold medal);
•Liudmyla Blonska (stripped of Olympic silver medal and banned for life after second failure);
•Baseball players Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens (reportedly);
•Triple Crown hopeful Big Brown (allegedly);
•A number of fighters including Phil Baroni, Cris Cyborg, Chris Leben, Zabit Samedov, Kirill Sidelnikov, Tim Sylvia, and now Viscardi Andrade.