Neil Magny has cleared his name and is finally set to make his return to the octagon.
Magny (21-7 MMA, 14-6 UFC) will take on Li Jingliang at UFC 248 on March 7, MMA Junkie verified the matchup after an initial report from Combate.
Magny (17-5 MMA, 9-3 UFC) tested positive for the banned substance Di-Hydroxy-LGD-4033 prior to his scheduled bout with Vicente Luque in May, forcing him to pull out of the fight. After being put on a provisional suspension for four months, Magny was exonerated and cleared to to return. Magny’s case was spotlighted by the UFC when the company announced changes to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency-administered drug testing program as pertains to unintentional ingestion of small amounts of banned substances in tainted supplements.
He hasn’t competed since his fourth-round knockout loss to Santiago Ponzinibbio in November 2018.
China’s Jingliang has won his past three in a row, most recently taking out the streaking Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos in August, putting a halt to his seven-fight win streak. He has won seven of his past eight bouts.
The current UFC 248 lineup includes:
- Champ Zhang Weili vs. Joanna Jedrzejczyk – for women’s strawweight title
- Li Jingliang vs. Neil Magny
