At the end of 2015, it looked as though top ranked middleweight Yoel Romero was poised for a title shot after defeating Jacare Souza on the main card of UFC 194.
Following the fight, it was revealed that Romero had failed a drug test. While it was ultimately determined that the failed drug test was the result of a tainted supplement, Romero was still suspended for 9 months after he and the NSAC reached a settlement in the matter.
Despite that, former UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman, who will face Romero at UFC 205 on November 12th, doesn’t trust the former Olympic silver medalist when it comes to being a clean athlete. He spoke to Fox Sports:
“(Romero) failed while USADA was testing him randomly so he had the balls to take it then along with a lot of other guys. I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s still taking something, maybe he’s getting smarter with it,”
“I’m really hoping he’s being tested properly leading up to this next fight,” Weidman said. “I heard that they were going to test him, switching up the times, because you hear guys know the times they are going to be tested. Supposedly they are going to come at a bunch of different times so it’s completely random.
“So if these guys are taking stuff it’s a really risky thing. I hope they all get caught, every single one of them gets busted taking something. Hopefully the guys who were on stuff, they become pros and come off stuff and fight like a man like everybody else.”
“I just don’t trust anything,” Weidman said. “I don’t know if these guys got doctors and they’re getting their bloodwork checked everyday. I don’t what lengths they’re willing to go to. If they’ve been on steroids for a long time and they don’t want to come off, what kind of money are they willing to spend? What support they have to figure out ways to beat these drug tests? Buy different drugs that don’t show up on tests?
The fight is certainly a pivotal one. For Weidman, he will be looking to bounce back from his UFC 194 loss to Luke Rockhold in a fight that saw him lose his middleweight championship. For Romero, he will be looking to return following his suspension, and ideally cement his place at the top of the featherweight division.