Josh Quinlan has once again tested positive for the banned steroid metabolite that earned him a nine-month suspension.
This time, however, no punishment is expected. Quinlan (5-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) was removed from his UFC on ESPN 40 bout Saturday after the promotion was notified of a positive test Friday.
Like his positive test on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2021 that earned him a suspension and fine from the Nevada Athletic Commission (NAC), Quinlan once again tested positive for steroid metabolite M3.
As the UFC on ESPN 40 prelims played out, UFC Senior Vice President of Athlete Health and Performance Jeff Novitzky spoke with reporters about the oddity, which is becoming less unusual as time goes on.
Novitzky revealed Quinlan tested negative 14 times in between his suspension and positive test during fight week. The sample turned in showed levels of less than 100 picograms. A USADA investigation resulted and there were no adverse findings.
However, the NAC has different rules and the matter needs to be discussed before the commission before a fighter is allowed to compete again in the jurisdiction.
While there have been reports of the bout now happening at UFC on ESPN 41 in San Diego on Aug. 13, Novitzky said California State Athletic Commission head Andy Foster is still doing an independent investigation and determination of his own.
“Once you are exposed to it, intentionally or not, it’s going to be with you for a long period of time,” Novitzky told MMA Junkie and other reporters. If anything that comes out of this, it’s a good lesson not only for our UFC fighters but for aspiring fighters.
“I was talking to Jason House last night, Josh’s manager, saying, ‘You need to tell your guys and girls that want to get into the UFC (to) start acting like you’re in the UFC right now. Because what you do now, even if you’re not in the UFC yet, you can end up paying for later down the line when you do get it.’ It’s one of the craziest substances that I’ve seen here.”
Novitzky explained how M3 has seemingly reappeared in athletes during weight cuts. Quinlan is hardly the first to encounter this issue. USADA has stopped punishing fighters for M3 pulsing issues. Most famously, Jon Jones tested positive in a similar fashion ahead of UFC 232 which resulted in a shift of his rematch against Alexander Gustafsson from Las Vegas to Inglewood, Calif. in December 2018.
