Barack Lesnar
11-03-2008, 05:12 PM
http://mmajunkie.com/news/13153/report-failed-ufc-89-drug-test-nets-chris-leben-nine-month-suspension.mma
The Ultimate Fighting Championship has suspended UFC middleweight and UFC 89 headliner Chris Leben nine months and fined him one third of his fight purse for failing a drug test at the Oct. 18 event.
UFC President Dana White notified Dave Meltzer of Yahoo! Sports of the suspension and fine, which were issued after Leben tested positive for the steroid Stanozolol.
UFC 89 took place in Birmingham, England, and the UFC served as its own regulatory body for the event since the country has no athletic commission that oversees MMA shows.
Leben suffered a unanimous-decision loss to British fighter Michael Bisping in the main event of UFC 89, which aired via tape delay on Spike TV.
Leben admitted the steroid use to White and Meltzer, who quoted the fighter as saying that he wants to use his suspension time to speak to kids about the dangers of performance-enhancing drugs.
Stanozolol, which is often sold under the brand name Winstrol, is a synthetic anabolic steroid derived from testosterone that is usually prescribed to treat anaemia and hereditary angioedema in humans, though it's also available for veterinary uses. The drug is popular in the bodybuilding world, though MMA fighters such as Tim Sylvia, Phil Baroni and Kimo Leopoldo have tested positive for it in the past.
All 22 fighters from UFC 89 were tested, according to the report.
Leben had been scheduled to headline UFC 85 with Bisping in June, but the bout was postponed so that Leben could serve jail time for a previous DUI offense. He hoped jail time wouldn't be issued and that the move would allow him to secure a visa for the event. However, Leben was sentenced to 35 days in the Clackamas County Jail in Oregon (though he was released early), and the fight was postponed.
Serving the jail time was part of what Leben called a maturation process that followed his move to Hawaii, where he now serves as an MMA instructor at the ICON Fitness and MMA Center. Prior to UFC 89, Leben, who appeared on "The Ultimate Fighter 1" (with a few drunken rampages), also said he had quit drinking.
He'll be eligible to return to the UFC in July 2009.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship has suspended UFC middleweight and UFC 89 headliner Chris Leben nine months and fined him one third of his fight purse for failing a drug test at the Oct. 18 event.
UFC President Dana White notified Dave Meltzer of Yahoo! Sports of the suspension and fine, which were issued after Leben tested positive for the steroid Stanozolol.
UFC 89 took place in Birmingham, England, and the UFC served as its own regulatory body for the event since the country has no athletic commission that oversees MMA shows.
Leben suffered a unanimous-decision loss to British fighter Michael Bisping in the main event of UFC 89, which aired via tape delay on Spike TV.
Leben admitted the steroid use to White and Meltzer, who quoted the fighter as saying that he wants to use his suspension time to speak to kids about the dangers of performance-enhancing drugs.
Stanozolol, which is often sold under the brand name Winstrol, is a synthetic anabolic steroid derived from testosterone that is usually prescribed to treat anaemia and hereditary angioedema in humans, though it's also available for veterinary uses. The drug is popular in the bodybuilding world, though MMA fighters such as Tim Sylvia, Phil Baroni and Kimo Leopoldo have tested positive for it in the past.
All 22 fighters from UFC 89 were tested, according to the report.
Leben had been scheduled to headline UFC 85 with Bisping in June, but the bout was postponed so that Leben could serve jail time for a previous DUI offense. He hoped jail time wouldn't be issued and that the move would allow him to secure a visa for the event. However, Leben was sentenced to 35 days in the Clackamas County Jail in Oregon (though he was released early), and the fight was postponed.
Serving the jail time was part of what Leben called a maturation process that followed his move to Hawaii, where he now serves as an MMA instructor at the ICON Fitness and MMA Center. Prior to UFC 89, Leben, who appeared on "The Ultimate Fighter 1" (with a few drunken rampages), also said he had quit drinking.
He'll be eligible to return to the UFC in July 2009.