In November of 2017, featherweight competitor Grant Dawson was notified of a potential violation of the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) drug testing program before the fighter even made his UFC debut.
Dawson had his case heard by USADA and it has been dismissed, which prompted the UFC to issue the following statement:
UFC was informed by USADA that Grant Dawson received a dismissal of his potential anti-doping policy violation that was first reported in November 2017. This dismissal was based on the likelihood that the ingestion of the prohibited substance occurred prior to Grant coming under the UFC Anti-Doping Program. We understand that Grant was cooperative throughout USADA’s investigation. Today’s dismissal of Grant’s case reinforces UFC’s recent decision to resolve potential anti-doping policy violations before making them public. We wish Grant the best in his fighting career, whether that be here with UFC or elsewhere.
The fighter would also take to Instagram to comment on the news and also issue a warning to the featherweight division:
Now that the case has been dismissed, it would leave Dawson free to return to the UFC or wherever he chooses to fight at next.