Chase Sherman, the popular UFC heavyweight on his second stint with the promotion, will be on the sidelines for a bit. On Tuesday, USADA (the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency), which oversees the UFC’s Anti-Doping policy, announced via press release that Sherman had accepted a nine-month sanction for use of a banned substance.
Sherman (15-6) tested positive for anastrozole in a drug test sample collected in-competition on May 13, 2020. That was the night of Sherman’s win against Isaac Villanueva at UFC Jacksonville, the second of three shows the promotion held in Florida that month.
Anastrozole is in essence an estrogen blocker, as it blocks the aromatase enzyme, which helps produce estrogen in the body. It is banned at all times under the UFC Anti-Doping Policy and the UFC Prohibited List.
Sherman, who returned to the promotion for the fight in May, provided evidence that his use of the drug had come prior to rejoining the organization, according to USADA officials. However, he did not declare his use of the substance in his onboarding declaration.
In his favor, Sherman’s “full and complete cooperation” under the UFC’s Anti-Doping policy saw him gain a reduction in his sentence, which is dated retroactively to May 13, the date his positive sample was collected. However, the infraction also falls under the jurisdiction of the Florida State Boxing Commission, which will also be resolving its own case separately. That is likely to see Sherman’s win against Villanueva overturned to a no contest.
