UFC slams ‘garbage, trash’ Usada statement on Conor McGregor

The UFC has strongly criticized the United States Anti-Doping Agency (Usada) for its recent statement on Conor McGregor. In an article published on the Independent, the UFC is quoted as calling Usada’s words “false,” “garbage,” and “trash.”

McGregor recently returned to the Usada testing pool on October 8th in preparation for his upcoming fight. However, Usada also announced that it will be ending its partnership with the UFC in January. Usada CEO Travis Tygart cited an “untenable” relationship and expressed uncertainty about the UFC honoring its stipulations for McGregor.

For UFC athletes to compete, they must be in the Usada pool for six months, have at least two negative tests, and zero positive tests. Earlier this year, there were hints that Usada might grant an exemption to McGregor, which Tygart strongly opposed.

The UFC’s Senior Vice-President of Athlete Health and Performance, Jeff Novitzky, and the promotion’s CBO, Hunter Campbell, addressed Usada’s statement in a press conference on October 12th. Campbell stated that the UFC had always been clear with Usada that McGregor would reenter the program after recovering from his injury and would need to spend six months in the pool with no exceptions, regardless of his clean test results.

Campbell also emphasized McGregor’s integrity and honesty, expressing his disappointment with how Usada has treated McGregor by using him to advance a false narrative and gain media attention. Novitzky echoed Campbell’s sentiments, describing Usada’s statement as “false, garbage, trash” and criticizing the impact it has had on the UFC’s program.

Usada CEO Tygart maintains the agency’s credibility and stands by its statement.

In addition, the UFC announced that it will continue its partnership with Drug Free Sport, which works with other professional sports leagues.

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