Frank Mir Joins Long List Of Former UFC Champions To Be Suspended For PEDs

Frank Mir has been suspended two years for multiple violations of the UFC’s anti-doping policy. Mir became just the latest in a long line of former UFC champions who have tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs over the past few years.

If you don’t think the UFC has a PED problem you’ve got your head in the sand. The following former champions have all tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs in just the last few years: Josh Barnett, Brock Lesnar, Anderson Silva, Lyoto Machida, Jon Jones and now Mir. Five of those six former champs are all still employed by the organization, and the UFC would take Lesnar back in a heartbeat if given the chance.

On top of those guys, high-profile fighters like Chael Sonnen, Antonio Silva, Ben Rothwell, Stephan Bonnar, Alistair Overeem, Vitor Belfort, Nate Marquardt, Mirko Cro Cop, Cung Le and Tim Sylvia all tested positive during their UFC careers. Meanwhile, Wanderlei Silva just refused to take drug tests and was initially banned for life by the Nevada State Athletic Commission (it was later reduced to a three-year ban).

So yeah, the organization still has a long way to go before we can actually accept that its fighters are clean. The UFC does deserve credit for ramping up its drug-testing policies and employing USADA to handle its tests. That said, until fighters don’t think they can get away with using PEDs, the organization will carry a heavy cloud of suspicion over it.