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Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff Writer
Daniel Rodriguez has withdrawn from a scheduled bout with Santiago Ponzinibbio at Noche UFC on Sept. 16 in Las Vegas due to an atypical finding in a USADA drug test, he announced Thursday night on Instagram.
Rodriguez wrote that he tested positive in an out-of-competition test for the banned substance ostarine but added that he did not intentionally take the substance and believes it might have come from a contaminated dietary supplement. USADA only suspends athletes for ostarine if the level is above 1 nanogram per milliliter and they are not able to show a probability that the presence of the substance derived from a tainted supplement.
The 36-year-old Rodriguez said he must pull out of the fight while his situation is being investigated. He will also likely need to have a hearing in front of the Nevada State Athletic Commission to compete in Las Vegas in the future.
“While I am extremely disappointed in this development and am now unable to fight on September 16th, I am looking forward to finding a definitive explanation for my low-level positive test and am ready to fully cooperate with the USADA,” Rodriguez wrote.
No replacement for Rodriguez has been named.
“With all cases, the UFC ADP provides full due process including the right to a B-sample analysis and a hearing in front of an independent arbitrator before any sanction is imposed,” USADA said in a statement to ESPN on Friday. “All athletes are innocent unless and until proven to have committed a violation of the rules through the established process.
“We appreciate Mr. Rodriguez’s willingness to cooperate in the determination of the facts. We also acknowledge Mr. Rodriguez’s claim of supplement contamination, and while the facts must be determined before any conclusion is drawn, we continue to encourage athletes to exercise caution with supplements, which are not approved by the FDA, and ensure any supplement they choose to take is tested by a third party, such as NSF Certified for Sport.”
Noche UFC is UFC’s first event celebrating Mexican Independence Day. Rodriguez (17-4) is a popular Mexican American fighter born in California who would have been trying to snap a two-fight losing streak against Ponzinibbio.