It’s been one year since the UFC announced their partnership with the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) and approximately 1,320 in-and-out-of competition tests have been conducted.
The collaboration came after it was suspected that many athletes were using performance-enhancing drugs to gain an unfair advantage. Anderson Silva’s failed drug test for steroids at UFC 183 blew the lid off and the UFC have looked to crack down on the issue with their revamped policy.
While the USADA got off to a slow start in 2015, collecting just 81 samples in the first three months due to a feeling-out process, the Olympic-calibre organisation is reported to have conducted 450 tests (63 in-competition and 387 out-of-competition) in the first quarter of 2016 alone. The second quarter 2016 statistics are still pending.
Since the drug testing program rolled out last July, several UFC fighters have been flagged for anti-doping violations, including the likes of Lyoto Machida, Frank Mir and Yoel Romero.
Jonathan Bradley of FOX Sports compiled a list of the most tested fighters by weight class in an article earlier today; check it out below.
While 1,320 tests have been conducted over the first year, USADA CEO Travis Tygart stated that the organisation is aiming to conduct a minimum of 2,750 per year.
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