Anthony Pettis Plans to Sue USADA
USADA has been the cause of the demise of many professional MMA fighter’s careers. Sometimes they actually do catch an athlete cheating. But, most of the time there is controversy involved that keeps an innocent athlete out of action. Lots of fighters have been unknowingly guilty due to tainted supplements.
Simply put, it seems like they have caused more trouble than actually cleaning up the sport. Continuing with trouble, UFC star Anthony Pettis will be suing the sanctioning body. He claims that one of their drug testing cups cut his hand before he fought Nate Diaz.
Many fighters have spoken about suing USADA in the past. However, most of those cases were due to the athlete thinking they were wrongfully serving suspensions. In the case of Pettis, he believes that USADA played a part in him losing his fight to Nate Diaz at UFC 241.
Pettis Explains Incident to the Media
The anti-doping agency issues a testing cup to all of its athletes. Pettis claims that he cut his hand on the cup forcing him to go into the bout compromised. He spoke about the incident on the Ariel Helwani MMA Show.
”I had to fight compromised,” said Pettis. “I gave USADA a chance to make it right, but right now, we’re going through the court. I’ve got to sue them.”
According to Pettis, he was in talks with USADA to rectify the issue, but the company stopped responding to him. That’s when Anthony decided to go the legal route.
Understanding the Injury
Many people are wondering why the cut is such a big deal. But, to an MMA fighter using your hands are vital. Pettis wasn’t able to clench and make a fist or grappled at full strength. Furthermore, Anthony stated that the gash in his hand was so big that it required stitches.
UFC reps glued and taped the gash so that he would be able to still perform. But, he has to perform at a disadvantage.
We’ll wait and see how the case plays out of Pettis fully pursues legal action.
