Chad Mendes Explains Skin Cream Caused USADA Violation
Chad Mendes Explains Skin Cream Caused USADA Violation
By Jose YoungsUFC featherweight Chad Mendes recently revealed his anti-doping violation is a result of using a cream to treat a skin condition."I have suffe
By Jose Youngs
UFC featherweight Chad Mendes recently revealed his anti-doping violation is a result of using a cream to treat a skin condition.
"I have suffered from plaque psoriasis my entire life," Mendes said on CBS. "I've had that since I can even remember. I remember getting on the wrestling mat as a kid and people saying, 'Ah, you have a giant ringworm.' It's itchy all the damn time. I've tried going and seeing specialists.
"There's ointments and creams that they've given me but it destroys my immune system. I can't be getting sick before training camp. I've always just accepted [the cream] and put it on, but in this case it had something on it that was on the USADA banned list. I broke the rules. Did I use it? Of course. I didn't go to USADA make some BS story. The only other thing that I started using that was new was the lotion, and sure enough GHRP-6 was one of the damn ingredients."
The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency previously revealed Mendes had tested positive for GHRP-6 (Growth Hormone-Releasing Hexapeptide) following an out-of-competition urine test conducted on May 17.
As a result of his positive test, USADA handed Mendes a two-year suspension, will backdate to June 10, 2016, the date on which he received a provisional suspension.
"Whether it's intentional or not, that's breaking the rules so we'll have to suspend you," said Mendes. "I basically said 'alright I broke the rules.'"
As far as competition, Mendes has not stepped into the Octagon since his first round knockout loss to Frankie Edgar in December. This marked the second straight stoppage loss for the Team Alpha Male. He was previously seen on the receiving end of second round TKO to reigning Conor McGregor at UFC 189 last July.
The Sacramento native holds notable stoppage victories over Ricardo Lamas, Clay Guida and Cub Swanson while his 2014 title loss to former champion Jose Aldo earned multiple Fight of the Year honors.
"[This situation] is embarrassing, to be honest," said Mendes. "This is another reason why I haven't talked about it. This is super embarrassing to me. I've always been the type of guy that's worked my butt off and trained hard and done things the right way. And for this to come out and now be labeled a quote-unquote juice head, it's embarrassing man."
UFC featherweight Chad Mendes recently revealed his anti-doping violation is a result of using a cream to treat a skin condition.
"I have suffered from plaque psoriasis my entire life," Mendes said on CBS. "I've had that since I can even remember. I remember getting on the wrestling mat as a kid and people saying, 'Ah, you have a giant ringworm.' It's itchy all the damn time. I've tried going and seeing specialists.
"There's ointments and creams that they've given me but it destroys my immune system. I can't be getting sick before training camp. I've always just accepted [the cream] and put it on, but in this case it had something on it that was on the USADA banned list. I broke the rules. Did I use it? Of course. I didn't go to USADA make some BS story. The only other thing that I started using that was new was the lotion, and sure enough GHRP-6 was one of the damn ingredients."
The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency previously revealed Mendes had tested positive for GHRP-6 (Growth Hormone-Releasing Hexapeptide) following an out-of-competition urine test conducted on May 17.
As a result of his positive test, USADA handed Mendes a two-year suspension, will backdate to June 10, 2016, the date on which he received a provisional suspension.
"Whether it's intentional or not, that's breaking the rules so we'll have to suspend you," said Mendes. "I basically said 'alright I broke the rules.'"
As far as competition, Mendes has not stepped into the Octagon since his first round knockout loss to Frankie Edgar in December. This marked the second straight stoppage loss for the Team Alpha Male. He was previously seen on the receiving end of second round TKO to reigning Conor McGregor at UFC 189 last July.
The Sacramento native holds notable stoppage victories over Ricardo Lamas, Clay Guida and Cub Swanson while his 2014 title loss to former champion Jose Aldo earned multiple Fight of the Year honors.
"[This situation] is embarrassing, to be honest," said Mendes. "This is another reason why I haven't talked about it. This is super embarrassing to me. I've always been the type of guy that's worked my butt off and trained hard and done things the right way. And for this to come out and now be labeled a quote-unquote juice head, it's embarrassing man."