Junior Dos Santos, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira Cleared to Return Following USADA Investigation

Junior dos Santos, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira and Marcos Rogerio de Lima have been embroiled in a months long investigation by USADA as the anti-doping agency was looking into contaminated supplements coming out of Brazil.

In 2017, Dos Santos, Nogueira and de Lima all returned positive drug tests that pulled them from upcoming fights in the UFC. That led to an investigation by USADA into the supplements the fighters were taking, which then resulted in pharmacies in Brazil being busted for producing contaminated products.

According to USADA, the problem stemmed from ‘compounding pharmacies’, which unlike retail drug stores getting products directly from a manufacturer, these pharmacies actually receive the ingredients for medications and then mix them onsite.

These pharmacies located in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paolo, Brazil, also mixed their own supplements and sold them as a safe alternative to mass produced products while claiming they utilized “manufacturing processes designed to eliminate the possibility of cross-contamination.”

“Despite their claims, the compounding pharmacies, located in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, Brazil, sold contaminated supplements to Junior dos Santos and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, who each tested positive for hydrochlorothiazide, and Marcos Rogerio de Lima, who tested positive for hydrochlorothiazide and anastrozole,” USADA officials wrote in a statement on Monday.

Through an ongoing investigation, USADA independently sourced supplements from the compounding pharmacies, which the Salt Lake City laboratory confirmed were also contaminated with hydrochlorothiazide, anastrozole, and several additional prohibited substances.”

According to USADA, all of the fighters involved in the investigation are now cleared to return to action.

“Following USADA’s investigation, Almeida, De Lima, and Nogueira, who all used compounded supplements at the direction of their respective physicians or nutritionists, each accepted reduced six-month periods of ineligibility that ended upon the resolution of their cases. As such, the athletes are immediately eligible to return to competition,” USADA officials wrote.

All three athletes were unable to compete after being flagged for positive drug tests last year. Dos Santos missed out on a fight against Francis Ngannou while Nogueir was pulled from a matchup against Jared Cannonier. Meanwhile, de Lima was expected to face Saparbek Safarov last September until he missed out on fighting due to the positive drug test.

Dos Santos, who has now been out of action for nearly a year, maintained his innocence from the moment his positive drug test was revealed as he’s been a staunch advocate in support of the UFC’s anti-doping program.

The investigation ultimately allows him to return to work but he still had to deal with the accusations that he was a cheater for the past year while attempting to clear his name.

USADA will continue to work with Brazilian authorities to investigate these compounding pharmacies after this latest debacle adversely affected three UFC fighters who were unable to compete until this situation was resolved.

“I’m relieved that this nightmare is finally over,” Dos Santos said in a statement on Monday. “And that we were able to determine what happened and where the prohibited substance found in my sample came from. Like I’ve always said, I’m a clean athlete. The most important thing now is that I can go back to earning my livelihood. I want to get back inside the octagon as quickly as possible. Back to business.”

As of now there’s no word on when Dos Santos will fight again.