UFC Waiving Six Month Drug Testing Requirement for Jose Aldo's Return?

If so, that's a bad look three months into the new anti-doping program

Imagine the uproar and pearl clutching that would have taken place had the UFC allowed Conor McGregor to unretire and face Michael Chandler, or anyone, without undergoing six months of drug testing, as was required under the UFC's agreement with the United States Anti-Doping Agency. The protests would have been loud and drawn out. From all appearances, the promotion is allowing the freshly unretired Jose Aldo to compete without undergoing six months of drug testing. That fact has largely been ignored by the MMA media when writing about Aldo's unretirement and return to action.

I understand that McGregor didn't exactly pass the eye test while he was retired, but a policy is a policy, and according to MMA Fighting, that rule is still in place.

"As far as the rules for the program, nothing much changed with the new policy including rules surrounding fighters joining the UFC roster or athletes coming out of retirement, which requires six months of testing before being allowed to compete again."

I contacted UFC Anti-Doping to get clarification on that rule and why it seems to have been waived for Aldo. UFC 301 is scheduled to take place at Rio Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

According to USADA's drug testing records, Aldo last submitted to a drug test in the third quarter of 2022. He retired from the UFC in 2022, and the promotion reportedly released him from his contract. According to the UFC's online records, Aldo has not undergone a drug test in 2024.

Meanwhile, McGregor has five "test sessions" under the UFC Anti-Doping policy, which went into effect on January 1, 2024.

I have also contacted UFC Anti-Doping to find out how the UFC's "test sessions" differ from USADA's "sample count."

Under USADA, the UFC could waive the six-month policy "if it deems it would be unfair to the athlete." However, that rule, even if it was waived, according to ESPN, required "the fighter returning to the pool must pass two drug tests before competing again." The UFC gave two exemptions under USADA: one was to Brock Lesnar and the other was to Miesha Tate.

That exemption backfired on the UFC in Lesnar's case. The former UFC heavyweight champion tested positive for the banned substance clomiphene in pre-fight tests before he faced Mark Hunt at UFC 200. He also failed a fight-night test. Those test results did not come back before fight night. Lesnar beat Hunt by decision. However, the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) overturned his victory. USADA suspended Lesnar for one year.

The 37-year-old Aldo is scheduled to face Jonathan Martinez at UFC 301. Aldo ended his first run in the UFC with a unanimous decision loss to Merab Dvalishvili in August 2022. His most recent win is a December 2021 decision victory over Rob Font. The 29-year-old Martinez is on a six-fight winning streak. His most recent victory is an October 2023 TKO win over Adrian Yanez. Martinez is the No. 14 fighter in the official UFC bantamweight rankings.

Aldo entered the UFC Hall of Fame in 2023. He held the UFC featherweight title twice, and successfully defended that crown seven times. He was also the WEC featherweight champ, and defended that belt twice.

If the UFC allows Aldo to unretire with less than six months in the testing pool, it's setting a precedent very early under its new anti-doping policy.

Media Coverage

As for how the media is covering Aldo's return without spending six months in the anti-doping pool, it's largely ignoring it.

MMA Fighting mentioned it in its story, writing, “Under the UFC’s anti-doping program, Aldo should be required to undergo six months of drug testing before competing again, but it appears that timeline will be waived to allow him to fight at UFC 301.”

ESPN, MMA Junkie, MMA Mania, Sherdog, and zombie Bloody Elbow, did not mention the drug testing requirement.