After testing positive for trace elements of a banned substance, UFC 244’s Nate Diaz has been cleared of wrongdoing, and the fight is on, per Dana White.
While Nate Diaz announced earlier this week that he was off the UFC 244 card due to a drug test failure, it appears the fight is still a go. Late Friday, UFC President Dana White announced that the fight was on, adding “I 100% knew Nate wasn’t taking anything to cheat.”
The fight is ON!!! I 100% knew Nate wasn't taking anything to cheat. #UFC244 November 2, MSG. #BMF pic.twitter.com/U9VEOPT0Ul
— Dana White (@danawhite) October 26, 2019
While Diaz has yet to comment, it appears the fight, scheduled for next Saturday (November 2), is a go.
It’s been a crazy few days following Diaz’s announcement that he was off the card. While no official comment came from the UFC, ESPN reported that Diaz had tested positive for trace amounts of an SARM. Selective androgen receptor modulators include ostarine, a common culprit in contaminated supplements, and LGD4033 — which, per MMA Junkie’s John Morgan, is the substance Diaz tested positive for.
A vegan multi-vitamin is believed to be the source of Diaz’s positive test.
While Diaz’s fight with Jorge Masvidal for the “Bad Motherf*cker” title at UFC 244 being on is a win for fans, the entire chain of events raises several questions. Foremost among them, how was this investigation expedited so quickly, when other anti-doping cases involving UFC athletes seem to drag on for months, if not years, often costing fighters dearly.
Diaz’s claim that he was told to keep quiet about the matter is also worth looking into. But for now, fans get one of the biggest fights of the year. And Masvidal certainly didn’t seem worried anyway.
You not the baddest mofo in the game (i am) but you are one of the cleanest mofo’s @NateDiaz209 I’ll see you nov 2. I know your name is clean. I don’t need @usantidoping to tell me shit!
— Jorge Masvidal UFC (@GamebredFighter) October 24, 2019
Update, 5AM ET: The UFC has released a lengthy statement on the matter, exonerating Diaz and announcing changes to the UFC’s Anti-Doping program, which USADA oversees.
“Mr. Diaz has not committed an anti-doping policy violation, has not been provisionally suspended and is not subject to any sanctions,” it reads. “Additionally, UFC has been informed by independent experts who have determined that there is unequivocally no appreciable performance enhancing or therapeutic benefit from the significantly limited amount of LGD-4033 that may be present in his system, which is roughly 10,000 times lower than one LGD-4033 therapeutic dose.”
The full statement is available via the UFC’s official website.
