Jessica Penne has been suspended due to a failed drug test

Looks like Jessica Penne is screwed for awhile.



The U.S Anti-doping agency has announced that UFC strawweight Jessica Penne has been suspended due to a failed drug test.

Since the appearance of the U.S Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) back in 2015, the UFC has been monitoring the athletes at a very high level. The USADA is responsible for investigating any fighter who fails a test and punishing them accordingly. Today the USADA released a statement regarding UFC strawweight Jessica Penne. Penne failed a urine test back in March 2017 and has today agreed to take a punishment of 18 months.

“USADA and the Tennessee Athletic Commission announced today that UFC athlete Jessica Penne, of Chula Vista, Calif., has accepted an 18-month sanction for an anti-doping policy violation after testing positive for a prohibited substance,” the USADA statement read. “Penne, 34, tested positive for the presence of an anabolic androgenic steroid of exogenous origin following an out-of-competition urine test conducted on March 20, 2017. Exogenous anabolic androgenic steroids are classified as non-Specified Substances in the category of Anabolic Agents and prohibited at all times under the UFC Anti-Doping Policy and the Tennessee Athletic Commission Act of 2016, both of which have adopted the World Anti-Doping Agency, Prohibited List.”

Penne (12-5) is currently on a three-fight losing streak stemming from her title fight loss to former champion Joanna Jędrzejczyk in 2015. Penne failed the out-of-competition sample due to an irregularity in her blood biomarkers. Penne was able to provide a substance that she was taking per her doctor’s request that led to the irregular test.

In the time between the samples collection and the positive result, Penne competed at UFC Fight Night Nashville on April 22. Due to the active competition, Penne’s 18-month sentence will be backdated to April 23, 2017. This will allow her to be eligible to return to competition on October 23, 2018. The maximum sentence is two years, but because of cooperation, Penne received a lesser sentence.

News source: https://fansided.com/2018/01/05/ufc-strawweight-jessica-penne-suspended-18-months-usada/

Well that is a bummer for her and these are usually the ones that catch us all by surprise. I do always hope to see them just own it and move on if it is the case and not try to weasel out of it.

Yeah, those tests keep the game clean, and if someone misses one, usually everyone knows what it means.

This is another blackeye for UFC. Just a few months ago, Jon Jones, the UFC light heavyweight champion was charged of a failed drug test hence he was stripped of his belt. And since this is the second time for Jones, UFC had decided to ban him. Can you imagine that? A champion who is banned for use of banned drugs. For Jessica Penne at least maybe she can appeal to UFC to let her fight again after her suspension period.

If we look at most sports, doping is always an issue, and I'd say cycling is the very worst!