T.J. Dillashaw is no longer the UFC bantamweight champion after failing a drug test. Dillashaw announced Wednesday morning on Instagram he failed a drug test in relation to his January flyweight title fight against Henry Cejudo, and as a result of that, has chosen to relinquish his belt as a sign of respect “out of fairness and respect” to his division, he wrote:
“While words can’t even begin to express how disappointed I am at this time, please know that I’m working with my team to understand what has occurred and how to resolve this situation as quickly as possible,” Dillashaw wrote.
It is not clear what substance Dillashaw tested positive for. Dillashaw lost 125 pounds to challenge Cejudo in an attempt to become a two-division champion. But Cejudo knocked out Dillashaw in less than a minute into the bout, which headlined UFC Brooklyn, the promotion’s first show in the ESPN. Dillashaw’s suspension will be retroactive to that Jan. 19 bout. In keeping with their new policy announced last year, USADA no longer announces positive drug tests until the case has been resolved. Before the change, it was standard to announce “potential violations” before an investigation and a sanction was given to the athlete at hand.
TJ Dillashaw has been suspended for a year by the NYSAC, according to sources. A formal announcement is expected to be made this AM. Unclear at this time if he will be suspended longer by USADA but this is a NYSAC and USADA issue. Also unclear what he failed for. Developing.
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) March 20, 2019
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