×

UFC official reportedly says Casey has no positive tests

Cortney Casey

The Maui News

An official with the Ultimate Fighting Championship has said Cortney Casey has never tested positive for any prohibited substances, including in testing after UFC 211, according to an online report.

The website mmafighting.com, operated by SB Nation, quoted UFC vice president of athlete health and performance Jeff Novitzky as saying on Thursday that Casey, a strawweight mixed martial artist from Kahului, “didn’t cheat.”

Casey told The Maui News that she is waiting for the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation to react to the UFC’s comments.

Casey had defeated Jessica Aguilar in Dallas on May 13. That fight is listed as a no contest on ufc.com.

“This could have completely 100 percent been avoided,” Casey said late Friday.

“It was just a long time for me and my family to wait. We were just waiting for an answer we already knew the answer to.”

The 30-year-old Casey, ranked 11th in her weight class by the UFC, faces a three-month suspension after the Texas commission found she tested positive for a testosterone-to-epitestosterone ratio that surpassed its limit.

According to mmafighting.com, Novitzky said last week that Casey’s “B” sample came back negative for banned substances after testing done at a laboratory accredited by the World Anti-Doping Association. The lab used isotope-ratio mass spectrometry testing, considered a more comprehensive method for examining testosterone-to-epitestosterone ratios.

Casey expressed frustration with the Texas commission’s public comments last month.

“The damage is done. … In the eyes of most people now, I cheated,” she said.

“Before this, it was one of the biggest wins of my career,” Casey said, noting that she might otherwise have been able to appear on multiple additional UFC cards in 2017.

NEWSLETTER

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper?
     
Support Local Journalism on Maui

Only $99/year

Subscribe Today