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Why MMA's TRT problem won't go away

Roar Guru
28th August, 2012
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There has been a lot of discussion in recent days about the ridiculousness of testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) in MMA when compared with other sports.

Major League Baseball players are suspended for 50 games (just under 1/3 of their season) for testing positive for synthetic testosterone.

MMA fighters continue to walk to the cage, therapeutic usage exemption (TUE) in hand – laboratory-formulated testosterone helping bring their apparently depleted levels back in line with those of their competition, if not a little higher.

Ben Fowlkes of MMAjunkie.com delivered a tremendous piece on the situation that I recommend you read.

Like Fowlkes, I too applaud Jon Jones and Michael Bisping for expressing their feelings on TRT, the medical loophole that is allowing fighters like Frank Mir, Forrest Griffin, Chael Sonnen, and Dan Henderson to bring their sagging testosterone levels back up to the levels they had when they were younger.

While I agree that having more of the sport’s elite competitors speaking out against the practice is a positive step, I don’t think we’re going to see things change any time soon.

Why? Too many people don’t genuinely want to work towards correcting the problem.

Yes, I think TRT is a problem; I’d go so far as to call it an epidemic. I – like many others – find it preposterous that you can ‘top up’ on synthetic testosterone to help you compete with those damn pesky kids in the sport and their perfect natural testosterone levels.

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The trouble is that while plenty of people share their outrage and frustration with the situation in columns like this and on message boards, there are an equal amount of people who either have no real opinion/interest in the situation at all or take up the, “well, it’s legal in MMA” stance as if there is nothing that can be done about it.

UFC President Dana White is among those in the latter group. White has said in the past that he disagrees with the practice, but then puts the responsibility for rectifying the situation on the State Athletic Commissions that regulate the sport in the United States.

That would be acceptable if it were the athletic commissions who dictated which fighters competed in the UFC and challenged for title shots, but they’re not – those calls fall to White and the power brokers at Zuffa, and therefore, they need to take more ownership when it comes to helping eradicate this problem.

Should Henderson have stepped into the Octagon to face Jones this weekend, it would have been the third time in the last five UFC title fights that the challenger has competed on TRT; Frank Mir (UFC 146) and Chael Sonnen (UFC 148) were the others.

Let’s also not forget that Alistair Overeem was supposed to face Junior dos Santos at UFC 146, but was pulled from the card when he couldn’t get a license because his testosterone ratios were off the charts during a pre-fight screening.

With White essentially throwing up his hands and saying, “What am I supposed to do?” while awarding title shots to athletes who are gaming the system, the UFC is turning a pseudo-blind eye to the problem, rather than helping work towards a solution.

Additionally, as much as having fighters like Jones and Bisping voice their critical thoughts on the practice – and others have too by the way – is a positive, the real game-changer will be when fighters start turning down bouts with opponents who are using TRT.

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It’s one thing to say, “I think it’s dressed up cheating” like Bisping did last month; it’s something entirely different for Jones to say he’s not fighting Henderson because he doesn’t feel the playing field is level.

Would Jones or UFC heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos ever turn down a sizeable pay day against an opponent on TRT? Considering Jones was a week away from fighting Henderson and ‘Cigano’ is chomping at the bit to get in the cage with Overeem, I’m going to say no.

Just as I don’t anticipate Jones or dos Santos opting against fighting a TRT-fuelled opponent, I don’t expect there to be any point where the UFC puts their beliefs about TRT ahead of the balance sheet either.

And that’s why this isn’t going to go away any time soon.

As much as some very important people have very serious and on-point objections to the problem at hand, none of them are willing to dig in their heals, put the good of the sport over their own individual situations, and say, “Enough is enough.”

Until that happens, don’t expect the ongoing TRT issue to be resolved.

Follow The Roar’s UFC Expert E. Spencer Kyte on Twitter (@spencerkyte).

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