Romero will be 1st fighter to appeal USADA suspension for failed drug test
Middleweight contender Yoel Romero is going down swinging.
Romero was set to be suspended for nine months for failing an out-of-competition drug test, according to Marc Raimondi of MMA Fighting. Instead, he will become the first UFC fighter to appeal a suspension since the organization partnered up with the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency last July.
The news was first reported on Twitter by Ariel Helwani:
Confirmed that USADA has given Yoel Romero a suspension, per sources. He has decided to appeal and will be going to arbitration.
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) March 23, 2016
Romero was on a seven-fight winning streak after defeating Ronaldo Souza at UFC 194 in December, but that triumph was followed by an anti-doping violation. The exact substance is unknown, though Romero's camp claims the result stemmed from a contaminated dietary supplement.
Prior to the violation, the 38-year-old Cuban held a position in the top five of the 185-pound division, but he has since been removed from the UFC's official rankings.