Jon Fitch will challenge Rory MacDonald for the Bellator Welterweight Title this weekend in the main event of Bellator 220, with the bout also serving as the final opening round fight in the Bellator Welterweight World Grand Prix.
The former UFC fighter once served a nine month suspension for using PEDs in 2014, but Fitch says using the illegal substances was both the stupidest and best thing that ever happened to him.
“I fell down a spiral of depression. I was struggling with my personal family life and finances. I got to a place where you could see other guys around you — I found out about guys who I fought who were on TRT, the therapeutic exemptions, I learned about Vitor Belfort’s testosterone being covered up and him being allowed to compete anyway. There were rumors of other guys, that happening too also. And then I was taking a 70 percent pay cut, at least 70 percent pay cut from going from the UFC to World Series of Fighting. So I was thinking, like, why am I holding myself to this standard and making less money and my family’s struggling? Just all kinds of excuses. Any kind of excuse to rationalize why it was okay to cheat against a cheater like Palhares. And I had no idea what I was doing. It was pure comedy, me trying to use this shit. I had no idea what I was doing. I didn’t even grapple that entire training camp because I was so sore from the injections, because I was doing something wrong. I’m not even sure what I was doing wrong. But yeah, that was probably the stupidest thing and the best thing that ever happened to me,” Fitch said on The MMA Hour.
Fitch has not failed a drug test since serving that nine month suspension and is on a five fight winning streak as well.
Firas Zahabi, who is MacDonald’s coach, recently took shots at Fitch for previous PED usage, but Fitch claims that Zahabi is simply providing an excuse for a potential MacDonald loss.
“I don’t know, maybe he’s scared,” Fitch said. “He’s already creating an excuse for his fighter losing. I don’t know, I don’t really care.”
Bellator 220 takes place on Saturday, April 27 from the SAP Center in San Jose, California with Rory MacDonald and Jon Fitch headlining. Fightful is providing live coverage of the event, which streams live on DAZN.
