Georgian bantamweight Zviad Lazishvili has fallen afoul of the UFC’s Anti-Doping Policy.
In a press release distributed Wednesday, USADA (U.S. Anti-Doping Agency) officials announced that Lazishvili, who fights out of Alexandria, Virginia, had accepted a 10-month sanction after failing in-competition and out-of-competition drug tests in October and November of 2021.
The 30-year old tested positive for clomiphene and its metabolites, which falls under the category of Hormone and Metabolic Modulators. The substance is banned at all times under the UFC’s Anti-Doping Policy.
Lazishvili (13-1) came up short in his promotional debut against Jonathan Martinez on October 23, 2021. The unanimous decision loss snapped the Georgian’s 13-fight undefeated streak. Lazishvili had previously competed for the Legacy Fighting Alliance.
The bantamweight’s suspension will be backdated to October 23, 2021, the date of his first drug test failure. Additionally, Lazishvili saw a reduction in his sentence for cooperating with the investigation. He also produced evidence that use of the banned substance had occurred prior to his time with the UFC.
“While Lazishvili provided sufficient evidence that his use of clomiphene occurred prior to entering the program, he did not declare clomiphene on his onboarding declaration form and therefore he faces a violation for the presence of the substance in his samples,” USADA officials wrote in Wednesday’s press release. “Lazishvili received a reduction to the period of ineligibility for his Full and Complete Cooperation.”
If clomiphene sounds familiar, it’s the same substance Brock Lesnar was suspended for following UFC 200, which resulted in his win over Mark Hunt being overturned.
