UFC welterweight contender Daniel Rodriguez has accepted a reduced punishment for a recent failed drug test.
Rodriguez tested positive for ostarine, LGD-4033 and its metabolites during a urinalysis that stemmed from a July 28 out-of-competition drug test. He was given a six-month suspension by the Nevada Athletic Commission.
But Thursday, the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) announced Rodriguez has agreed to a three-month suspension for the violation. The sanction was reduced to three months from a full year because Rodriguez was able to prove his positive test came from a contaminated supplement on the approved list.
Rodriguez’s three-month suspension is retroactive to Aug. 17, when he was given a provisional suspension. That means he already is eligible to return. USADA said in a news release his suspension in Nevada has been resolved, as well.
Ostarine is a prohibited substance that most often is heard about from tainted supplements.
Rodriguez, 36, has no additional known history of failed tests. He most recently competed in May, when he was finished by Ian Machado Garry in Round 1. The loss was his second in a row, but his effort was praised by UFC CEO Dana White after the bout.
