UFC, USADA to part ways in January 2024 amid McGregor debacle

USADA will no longer oversee the UFC’s anti-doping program effective Jan. 1, 2024, ending an eight-year partnership that transformed anti-doping in mixed martial arts.

The UFC informed the agency Oct. 9 it was “going in a different direction” several months after “a positive and productive meeting about a contract renewal,” USADA announced Wednesday.

“We are disappointed for UFC athletes, who are independent contractors who rely on our independent, gold-standard global program to protect their rights to a clean, safe, and fair Octagon,” USADA CEO Travis T. Tygart said in a statement. “The UFC’s move imperils the immense progress made within the sport under USADA’s leadership.”

USADA also announced UFC star Conor McGregor has officially re-entered the drug-testing pool as of Sunday.

The UFC-USADA split comes after months of disaccord between the two sides about McGregor’s eligibility to compete. With a McGregor fight in the works since February, USADA has maintained that the Irishman must be in the testing pool for six months before he can step into the Octagon. However, UFC president Dana White has suggested the promotion could exempt McGregor from that rule.

Tygart said the UFC and USADA’s relationship “became untenable given the statements made by UFC leaders and others questioning USADA’s principled stance.”

“Fighters’ long-term health and safety – in addition to a fair and level playing field – are more important to USADA than short-term profits at the expense of clean athletes,” Tygart said. “USADA is proud of the work we’ve done over the past eight years to clean up the UFC, and we will continue to provide our unparalleled service to UFC athletes through the remainder of our current contract, which ends December 31, 2023. As always, we will continue to uphold the rights and voices of clean athletes in all sports.”

USADA partnered with the UFC to oversee the promotion’s anti-doping program in July 2015.