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Dana White wants athletic commissions to ban TRT

1K views 16 replies 15 participants last post by  box 
#1 ·
MONTREAL – Cornered by persistent questions about drug testing in the UFC, Dana White said his current goal is to eradicate exemptions for testosterone replacement therapy.

"Then when you show up for a fight, the state athletic commissions will do their testing however they do their testing," White said following a pre-event news conference for UFC 158, which takes place Saturday at Montreal's Bell Centre.

The UFC president has turned a corner on TRT, earlier this year promising additional testing for athletes that want to legally use testosterone by obtaining a therapeutic use exemption. Previously, he left the issue to state athletic commissions.

"If you ask for a TRT exemption, you are going to be tested brutally," White said.

The Nevada State Athletic Commission, whose former executive director, Marc Ratner, now works for the Las Vegas-based UFC, has to date issued six exemptions for TRT. As the number of applications have grown, the commission has enacted stricter guidelines for obtaining a TUE, which include multiple pre-fight blood and/or urine tests and requiring a signed affidavit stating an athlete has not previously used banned performance-enhancers.

Exemptions in other states largely go unreported due to disclosure laws. UFC vet Nate Marquardt, who fights on the pay-per-view main-card of UFC 158, received a temporary exemption from the New Jersey Athletic Control Board, but it was revoked when he failed a pre-fight blood test.

White said additional testing currently is underway in an effort to make sure fighters don't use the exemption to make training camp easier.

"People who put in for a TRT exemption, we're going to make sure that throughout your training period, you're not jacked up to these levels here, and then bringing them back to these levels here for the fight, when get tested by the athletic commission," he said.

But when it comes to random, out-of-competition testing, which is widely accepted as the most effective deterrent to illicit drug use, that's where the UFC defers to regulatory bodies. Of the larger commissions, the NSAC is considered a leader in out-of-competition testing, randomly screening select fighters prior to events held in the state.

"We're focusing on the things that we can manage," White said, later adding that he would also test any fighter suspected of PED use.

At this point, that means making TRT an unattractive option for fighters without a legitimate medical need for it.

"This is baby steps," White said. "I don't just come out and say, 'Here's what I'd like all the athletic commissions to do across the country.' I don't know how many times I have to tell you guys, they don't give a f--k what I think. They regulate me.

"It's very easy for me to go with the flow on TRT: 'Hey, commission says it's fine.' I'm against it. But there's only so much you can do."
http://www.mmajunkie.com/news/2013/...ants-use-banned-by-state-athletic-commissions

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#3 ·
I dont like TRT and wish it never affected the fight world. However I can understand some legitimate fighters needing it.

I agree with the new UFC stance of testing TRT fighters regularly and scrutinising them more then other fighters. However some fighters can still get away with this.

I think any fighter using TRT should be tested even more closely and its a big drawback to any fighter being tested that much but that is something they have to accept being part of the drawback of using TRT.
This should make some future fighters think twice before using TRT especially the ones who dont really need to use testosterone.
 
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#5 ·
I dont like TRT and wish it never affected the fight world. However I can understand some legitimate fighters needing it.

I agree with the new UFC stance of testing TRT fighters regularly and scrutinising them more then other fighters. However some fighters can still get away with this.

I think any fighter using TRT should be tested even more closely and its a big drawback to any fighter being tested that much but that is something they have to accept being part of the drawback of using TRT.
This should make some future fighters think twice before using TRT especially the ones who dont really need to use testosterone.
Are there any current TRT users who have not either been caught for PED use in the past or been under heavy suspicion?
 
#9 ·
I think it is stupid to ban TRT and less then fair for people who legitimately need it in order to perform but are now allowed because it is banned.

I just want them to be tested more often so to make sure a fighters testosterone isnt above the legal limit during 3 months prior to the fight and the fight itself.
 
#10 ·
How about we ban TRT for the guys who don't have hypogonadism?

I doubt that there are people in MMA with congenital hypogonadism and I doubt any of the guys who get TRT actually suffer from it. If anything they aquired it by substance abuse or through brain injury in which case they shouldn't be fighting at all.
 
#11 ·
I don't think he *really* does. I think he is annoyed because of the questions it raises and is taking a vocal stance becaquse it's good for the company. But I don't think he really truly cares either way.
 
#13 ·
Well one major issue is that hypogonadism isn't totally understood yet. Certainly the handful of doctors on any given commission's payroll aren't all experts in it.

So when some guy rolls up and his nuts aren't producing test as they should be... well, there could be a lot of reasons and it's very difficult to narrow it down. Specialists are expensive and time consuming. And at the end of the day I think guys like Kizer and Lembo are more than willing to just sort of best-guess it and in a lot of cases I think it just comes down to who plays their game properly.
 
#16 ·
They allow themselves to be governed by the state athletic commision for the puprose of legitimacy. If they were to start dictating all of the rules, it could easily lead to certain bias's that would cater to their own financial interests. Being goverened by an outside party is for the best.
 
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