UFC heavyweoght Raphael Pessoa will have to wait until the spring of 2021 for a return to the octagon.
Pessoa accepted a one-year suspension from the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency after violating the UFC’s anti-doping policy. USADA announced the news Monday afternoon.
Pessoa (10-2 MMA, 1-2 UFC) tested positive for banned substance hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ) and its metabolites chlorothiazide and 4-amino-6-chloro-1,3-benzenedisulfonamide (ACB) in a sample collected in an out-of-competition test on March 4.
Pessoa’s suspension is retroactive from the date the positive sample was collected, so he’ll be eligible to return on March 4, 2021. The Brazilian last fought July 26, five months after the positive sample was collected, losing to Tanner Boser via second-round TKO. USADA said that the reporting of the sample was delayed by laboratory closures caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
Normally, if a test sample comes back negative, fighters are pulled from their scheduled bouts and given a provisional suspension until the case is resolved.
