UFC fighter Isabela de Padua suspended for two years after testing positive for steroids

USADA announced on Thursday that Isabela de Padua, of Sao Paulo, Brazil, has accepted a two-year sanction for a violation of the UFC Anti-Doping Policy after testing positive for a prohibited substance. 

De Padua, 28, tested positive for 19-norandrosterone (19-NA), the main urinary metabolite of nandrolone (19-nortestosterone) and other 19-norsteroids following an in-competition test on November 16, 2019 where she lost by unanimous decision and an out-of-competition urine test conducted on December 19, 2019.

In accordance with standard practice, the exogenous, or non-natural, origin of the 19-NA was further confirmed by sophisticated carbon isotope-ratio mass spectrometry (GC/C/IRMS) analysis, which can reveal the presence of anabolic agents. In this case, the GC/C/IRMS analysis result was consistent with the exogenous origin of 19-NA. 19-norsteroids, including nandrolone and its precursors, are non-Specified Substances in the class of Anabolic Agents and prohibited at all times under the UFC Anti-Doping Policy and UFC Prohibited List.

Upon being added to the UFC Anti-Doping Program, athletes are required to declare all medications and supplements they have used in the previous 12 months. An athlete who declares the prior use of a prohibited substance will not be deemed to have committed a violation but, depending on the substance, may be required to refrain from competition for a period of at least six months and provide at least two negative samples. De Padua did not declare the use of nandrolone, or any 19-norsteroids, on her onboarding declaration forms.

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De Padua’s two-year period of ineligibility began on November 16, 2019, the date her first positive sample was collected. As the regulatory body that sanctioned de Padua’s bout on November 16, 2019, the Comissao Atletica Brasileira de MMA (CABMMA) has recognized USADA’s sanction subject to any additional fines it may impose in accordance with the CABMMA Anti-Doping Policy.