Just a couple of days after being suspended for two years (retroactive to last year) by the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), former UFC Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir has issued a statement on the matter.
Mir mentioned that he had personally sought out information in regards to what may have caused his in-competition failure last year. However, he would come to learn that the metabolite in question could have been years old.
I have consistently denied knowingly taking anything that would violate USADA's guidelines. I was originally told that my post fight sample from March 20, 2016, had been flagged for a trace metabolite, following my clean test the previous month on February 5. For this past year, I have been focused on analyzing anything I could within that six week window that could've possibly been the cause...testing supplements and reviewing dietary habits. It is frustrating to now be told that USADA has changed their mind about the February 5 test, claiming that the sample they once cleared is now clouded with the same trace metabolite. Even more frustrating is that I've been told that the long term metabolite could date back two years, prior to the implementation of USADA standards and possibly to a time when I had a legal exemption for testosterone replacement therapy. As hard as it was to try to retrospectively analyze everything I had consumed within a fairly recent six week period of my life, I would have no idea where to start going back years into my past. What I can do is reiterate my denial and ask you to note that my position on this issue has remained consistent. By contrast, USADA now has two versions of their narrative concerning me. I will discuss this latest development at length on Monday's edition of my Phone Booth Fighting podcast. I invite you to listen as I will have much more to say on this issue. The outpouring of support that I continue to receive from my fans has been overwhelming, and I am eternally grateful to each of you for that.
-Frank Mir
Mir had failed an in competition drug test after being knocked out by Mark Hunt at UFC Fight Night 85 in March of 2016.
The former heavyweight champion was caught with the substance known as dehydrochloromethyltestosterone (DHCMT) in his system.
This suspension from USADA is retroactive to the date of his drug test failing on April 8 of 2016, which means Mir is able to fight again on April 8 of 2018. Mir has already served half of his suspension at this point in time.
While the former UFC Heavyweight Champion has been steadfast in his denial of taking any illegal substances, USADA had the sample tested twice to ensure accuracy and the second test also showed that Mir took illegal substances.
