Doping in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC): A 4‐year epidemiological analysis

Abstract

Background: Doping is a practice that is present in many sports and organizations, including mixed martial arts and the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). The aim of this study is to explore the epidemiological patterns of doping among UFC athletes. Methods:We screened the official United-States-Anti-Doping-Agency® (USADA) website, the annual USADA reports and the official UFC website for information on fighters and anti-doping rule violations (ADRVs). Our dataset included gender, age, weight class, testing numbers, date of ADRV, type of ADRV, and duration of suspension. Appropriate statistical tests were conducted to assess for statistical significance.Results: USADA tested 1070 UFC athletes 2624 times as of late 2015 up till the end of 2019 (N = 1070). A total of 209 adverse findings were recorded; out of which, 102 ADRVs were committed by 93 athletes (8.7%) from all weight divisions. This constituted an adverse finding rate of 16.55 per 1000 test and an ADRV rate of 8.08 per1000 test. Mean age of sanctioned athletes was 32 years. Use of anabolic steroids was significantly the most common ADRV recorded (p = 0.018). The men's heavyweight division had an ADRV rate of 19.3 per 1000 tests, significantly higher than that of women's bantamweight division at 2 per 1000 tests (p = 0.03), women's featherweight division at 0 per 1000 tests (p = 0.009), and men's flyweight division at 3 per 1000 tests (p = 0.035). ADRV rate showed a significantly increasing trend among men's weight divisions (p < 0.001). Conclusion:Doping is present in mixed martial arts. Increasing testing numbers, raising awareness and education on the risks of doping, and conducting further research on the issue is key to help resolve this problem.

Exploratory Systematic Review of Mixed Martial Arts: An Overview of Performance of Importance Factors with over 20,000 Athletes

“…Amtmann et al [9] found that regional athletes performed specific training 3-12 times per week, with almost all athletes supplementing their routine with strength training 1-7 days per week, and some of them self-reporting the use of anabolic-androgenic steroids. According to Fares et al [109], the use of band ergogenic aid by MMA athletes in the UFC is common. According to Fares et al [109], doping is present among UFC MMA athletes with an average age of 32 years, in which the weight category was the most prevalent with the highest rate of fighters and anti-doping rule violations (ADRVs): 19.3 per 1000 tests.…”

“…According to Fares et al [109], doping is present among UFC MMA athletes with an average age of 32 years, in which the weight category was the most prevalent with the highest rate of fighters and anti-doping rule violations (ADRVs): 19.3 per 1000 tests. Between late 2015 and late 2019, n= ~1070 UFC athletes were tested 2624 times reporting 102 ADRVs and, of these, n = 93 fighters (8.7%) belonged to all weight categories [109]. This yields a corresponding rate of 16.55 per 1000 tests and an ADRVs rate of 8.08 per 1000 tests [109].…”

“…Between late 2015 and late 2019, n= ~1070 UFC athletes were tested 2624 times reporting 102 ADRVs and, of these, n = 93 fighters (8.7%) belonged to all weight categories [109]. This yields a corresponding rate of 16.55 per 1000 tests and an ADRVs rate of 8.08 per 1000 tests [109]. Kirk et al [107], in an innovative and promising study exploring external loading during sparring training through the use of a tri-axial accelerometer, found the average accumulated load of the fighters (PLdACC was of 224.32 ± 26.59 au) and average accumulated load per minute (PLdACC.min-1 was 14.91 ± 1.78 au).…”

“…It has been established that the consumption of ergogenic aids (including banned substances) are commonly used in MMA to improve performance [109]. This use likely stems from their training environment and the professionals who make up the technical committee "reference group" (GR), that is coaches, teammates/training partners, and doctors [121].…”

Doping behaviour in mixed martial arts athletes: the roles of social norms and self-regulatory efficacy

“…In recent years M ixed M artial Arts (M MA) has grown exponentially in both viewership and participation [1][2] . However, this growth has also been accompanied by a rise in the use of banned performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs), with the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) reporting 116 doping violations in the past five years within the UFC alone [3][4] . The pervasiveness of doping within M MA can be attributed to the sport's neuromuscular demands for competitive success (i.e., muscular strength and endurance) [5][6][7] .…”