A banned substance has once again shown up in UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones’ urine tests, but the California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) says there’s nothing to worry about.
MMA Fighting reports that a Voluntary Anti-Doping Agency (VADA) test for UFC 232 revealed trace amounts of Turinabol in Jones’ system from a sample taken on weigh-in day on December 28 of 2018. Jones had originally tested positive for Turinabol in a sample collection dating back to July 2017 and was subsequently sanctioned and stripped of his title following a win against Daniel Cormier. Trace amounts of the substance showed up ahead of Jones’ bout with Alexander Gustafsson, which was originally to be held in Las Vegas, but was then moved to Los Angeles after the positive test result.
CSAC executive officer Andy Foster told MMA Fighting that the Commission would not be disciplining Jones for the findings due to Turinabol’s tendency to stay in the body for long periods of time and the fact that Jones’ subsequent tests have come back clean. Foster also said that after speaking with Sports Medicine Research and Testing Laboratory (SMRTL) lab directors, there was no evidence that Jones had re-taken the drug since the initial positive results.
“We’ve already punished Jon Jones for the M3 metabolite, which is a long-term metabolite. There’s no grounds to charge somebody twice for the same violation,” said Foster. The UFC and United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) will also refrain from taking action against Jones after his latest result.
Jon Jones’ next fight will take place at UFC 235 against Anthony Smith on March 2.
