Vitor Belfort Randomly Drug Tested by NSAC Ahead of UFC 184 Title Fight
Days after UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman questioned the Nevada State Athletic Commission for not drug testing Vitor Belfort leading up to their UFC 184 bout, "The Phenom" has submitted to a blood and urine sample.
Although "The Phenom" was granted a conditional license by the NSAC back in July, this was the first time he was tested in the past four months or so, as Yahoo! Sports first reported.ย
"Executive director Bob Bennett confirmed to Yahoo Sports that a collector representing the Nevada commission took both blood and urine samples from Belfort in Florida, where Belfort is living while preparing for a Feb. 28 middleweight title match against Chris Weidman.ย The results of Saturday's test will not be known for approximately two weeks, Bennett said. Bennett said Belfort was cooperative and posed no objection to being tested.
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The latest news refutes a report from MMA Fighting on October 23 that said the NSAC would be handing over Belfort's drug-testing responsibilities to the California State Athletic Commission.ย
Many fighters and fans alike were puzzled over Belfort getting granted a conditional license in the first place, given that he admitted to failing a drug test in February due to elevated levels of testosterone.ย
The Brazilian knockout specialist was originally slated to square off with Weidman at UFC 173 in May, but he withdrew from the bout shortly after the NSAC banned testosterone-replacement therapy in February, per FOX Sports.ย
Belfort gave Weidman a run for his money for "Fighter of the Year" honors in 2013, scoring headkick knockouts over the typically very durable Michael Bisping, Luke Rockhold and Dan Henderson.
Of course, few could argue with Weidman receiving the accolade after scoring two finishes over seemingly unstoppable middleweight kingpin Anderson Silva at UFC 162 and UFC 168, respectively.ย
Will Belfort vs. Weidman go off without a hitch on February 28, or will another drug-testing fiasco leave the UFC searching for another main event replacement?
Johnย Heinisย is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also theย MMAย editor forย eDraft.com.
