Chael Sonnen, irony is calling your name.
Two weeks after Sonnen mocked Wanderlei Silva for running away from a random drug test that led to Vitor Belfort replacing the Brazilian in the UFC 175 fight, Chael himself was busted for failing a random drug test.
According to ESPN, Sonnen tested positive for illegal substances anastrozole and clomiphene during a random drug test in Las Vegas last month when Sonnen was in town for a UFC news conference. Anastrozole is used to treat breast cancer, while clomiphene is used in cases of female infertility.
This is the second time Sonnen has failed a drug test; he had an elevated T/E ratio in 2010 and was suspended prior to his rematch with Anderson Silva.
Sonnen is a known TRT user and said he would make adjustments in the wake of the UFC/NSAC’s crackdown on the treatment. The substances he tested positive for are used as treatments for hypogonadism, which is the condition Sonnen has that he argues necessitates his TRT.
The Sonnen-Belfort fight has been pulled off the card entirely. Belfort was also set to appear in front of the commission next month for a positive test he had in February. That means the three men playing musical chairs for the fight — Sonnen, Silva and Belfort — all have failed drug tests this year. That is not a good look for the UFC.
Sonnen went on “Jay Mohr Sports” Tuesday to explain the positive test. No surprise, he did his best to talk circles around it.
“They changed the ruling in Nevada earlier this year, doing away with the TRT, testosterone replacement therapy, and I was on that. So when they changed the rule, we all had to go through a transition phase. For me during the transition, I had to take a couple of things. One is called Clomiphene……and another is called HCG (Human Chorionic Gonadotropin). I didn’t fight it or ask for a license. In the interim, they did a test, and I tested positive for these things which I should have because I took them and they were in my system. That wasn’t a surprise. These aren’t anabolics, these aren’t steroids or performance enhancers, but they have deemed that they are banned substances. What’s interesting in my case is that we’re out of competition. These aren’t things that I showed up with on game day. This is out of competition due to a rule that they changed, so it’s an odd spot for me.”
