World Champion BJJ black belt and ADCC champ turned fighter Robert Drysdale has been denied a license to fight at UFC 167 by the Nevada State Athletic Commission. The reason given was that Drysdale’s Testosterone-to-Epitestosterone (T/E) ratio was 19.1/1, over 3 times the NSAC’s allowable limit of 6/1.
Robert Drysdale denied fighter’s license for UFC 167 due to elevated testosterone levels
The story was reported earlier today by MMA Junkie.
According to records obtained by MMA Junkie, Drysdale had applied for a Therapuetic Use Exemption (TUE) for the controversial Testosterone Replacement Therapy (TRT) treatment in advance of his bout at UFC 163 with Ednaldo Oliviera, a debut which fell through due to injury. The TRT was being done through an anti-aging clinic called TrimBody MD, and was administered by injection on a weekly basis to combat a case of hypogonadism. This was supported by a blood examination performed by Clinical Pathology Laboratories, which showed Drysdale’s free testosterone levels at 156 ng/mL, below the lab’s minimum normal testing level of 292 ng/mL. Additionally, the would-be UFC debutant tested for luteinizing and follicle-stimulating hormones at normal levels (2.1 mIU/mL and 6.0 mIU/mL, respectively).
Despite these test results, which are important for diagnosing primary or secondary hypogonadism, Keith Kizer of the NSAC revealed that Robert Drysdale’s request for a TUE was declined. At some point after this, Drysdale pulled out of his scheduled UFC 163 bout, citing a staph infection.
Robert Drysdale (6-0), up until this point, had been appearing to make the transition to MMA from strict grappling rather successfully. Undefeated in 6 professional bouts, Drysdale finished all of his opponents by submission. This caught the UFC’s eye, and led to his contract. The former Abu Dhabi Combat Club gold medallist has yet to make his debut with the promotion, and had been scheduled to have his first fight on the undercard of UFC 167, against Cody Donovan. No additional punishments have been announced for Drysdale at this time.
UFC 167 goes down on November 16th at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, NV. The card is headlined by a welterweight title bout pitting long time champion Georges St. Pierre against hard-punching wrestle-boxer Johny Hendricks. Stay tuned to MMASucka.com for more on this and other events.
