Biogenesis PED scandal brings dread for UFC brass

UFC President Dana White is hoping none of the fighters under contract with the promotion is linked to the Biogenesis scandal. 

“Obviously, it’s an athletic commission issue, but it’s just one of those things,” White said. “It’s just another f—king headache I don’t need.”

The executive hasn’t been keeping tabs on the story and said he had no idea how he’d handle it if UFC fighters are linked to the shuttered South Florida clinic, which reportedly supplied performance-enhancers to more than a half-dozen MLB stars. 

This past week, a Biogenesis employee-turned-whisteblower said the number of athletes connected to the clinic actually numbers more than a hundred and includes athletes from MLB, NBA, NCAA, tennis, pro boxing and MMA. 

So far, no MMA athletes have been named in connection with the scandal and subsequent investigation into the clinic. But White said he would deal with it if that happens. 

White, though, said he needed to learn more information before deciding a course of action. Following this past Saturday’s UFC on FOX 8 event, which took place at KeyArena in Seattle, he peppered reporters with questions about the case and what kinds of drugs Biogenesis had supplied to athletes.

He did not say definitively if he would cut a UFC fighter who appears on the clinic’s client list, but said, “If a guy signs a contract with me and then comes out a list, it’s not going to be good. It’s going to suck.”

Athletes linked to Biogenesis reportedly were supplied with testosterone creams, human growth hormone and steroids. The clinic’s owner, Anthony Bosch, is cooperating with MLB and has provided records for 20 to 25 baseball players. The bulk of those publicly implicated in the scandal are baseball players, including recently suspended Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Ryan Braun, the 2011 National League MVP.

White joked that the number of players in trouble was “not bad for baseball.” 

In the past year, though, the UFC president has taken a hard line on the use of prescribed testosterone, going so far as to say he’d like to stamp out the issuing of therapeutic use exemptions by state athletic commissions to compete on TRT.

For those who ask permission to use testosterone, or already received permission, he’s promised to “test the s–t” out of UFC fighters. The promotion already requires fighters to supply a clean drug test upon signing with the promotion.

But, he said, the mechanisms for rooting out licit and illicit users differ in MMA as compared to other sports, where leagues are policed internally and not overseen by state athletic commissions, which conduct fight-night and sometimes out-of-competition drug testing. 

“If you’re one of the big guys, you’re getting tested,” White said. “And if you’re remotely suspicious, you’re getting tested. It’s the government. It’s how they make their money. They bust these guys on this stuff. That’s how they get paid. That’s what they’re there to do. They want to catch people. Trust me. 

“Athletic commissions aren’t doing me any favors at all, and who is a bigger pain in the ass to the athletic commission than me? All I do is talk about their f–king judges and referees.”

If any UFC fighters are implicated in the scandal, however, that conversation may change. 

(Pictured: Dana White)