It was recently revealed that former UFC heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos has been pulled from UFC 215 due to an anti-doping policy violation. Now, it would appear that the substance the former champion failed his drug test for is potentially found in tap water.
Ana Claudia Guedes, a representative of the former champion, recently provided a statement to Fansided. In the representative’s statement to Fansided, Guedes explained what Junior dos Santos failed the test for and what that may mean for the champion.
“We now have the official copy of Junior’s August 10 urine test. The level of hydrochlorothiazide listed on his USADA result was ‘low.’ Additionally, the specific gravity reading of Junior’s urine sample was 1.025, indicating that the sample was not diluted. We understand the concentrated urine sample to mean that the low level of hydrochlorothiazide in Junior’s system had no diuretic effect on his sample.
“We are learning about some recent anti-doping cases where low levels of hydrochlorothiazide have been the result of supplement contamination, and even contaminated ground water. A 2016 study published by the National Institutes of Health found that over-the-counter NSAIDs left hydrochlorothiazide traces (See: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/27611956/).
“Our goal now is simply to determine the unintended source of the hydrochlorothiazide. To that end, we have identified two nutritional supplements that Junior recently began using–neither of which show hydrochlorothiazide anywhere on their respective labels or ingredient lists– and are working with USADA to test both. Hopefully that gets us answers.
“All drug tests that Junior has taken–both prior to and post implementation of the USADA program–have been negative, including blood and urine samples he provided on July 10 of this year. He prides himself on being a clean athlete, and looks forward to resolving this matter.”
