Brock Lesnar retires from UFC in middle of doping suspension
Brock Lesnar has retired from mixed martial arts again.
UFC officials confirmed to FOX Sports on Tuesday that Lesnar has notified the promotion of his retirement from the sport following his last fight against Mark Hunt in Las Vegas in July.
The former UFC heavyweight champion has yet to go public with his retirement, but he has been pulled from the UFC’s drug testing pool with the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), according to MMAFighting.com.
USADA suspended Lesnar for one year after he tested positive for two banned substances before and after his fight with Hunt at UFC 200, and required him to remain in the drug-testing pool for the length of his suspension.
“Pursuant to the UFC Anti-Doping Policy, all UFC athletes serving a period of ineligibility for an anti-doping policy violation are required to remain in the USADA registered testing pool and make themselves available for testing in order to receive credit for time served under his or her sanction,” USADA officials said in a release announcing Lesnar’s suspension in January.
“Furthermore, if an athlete retires during his or her period of ineligibility, the athlete’s sanction will be tolled until such time the athlete notifies USADA of his or her return from retirement and once again makes him or herself available for no-advance-notice, out-of-competition testing.”
Lesnar would need to serve the remaining time in his suspension if he decides to make a return to the UFC at some point in the future.
This is the second time Lesnar has retired from the UFC. After he called it quits in 2011, following a loss to Alistair OVereem, Lesnar resumed his WWE career.
Lesnar’s surprise return to UFC for the fight in July, which he won by unanimous decision, was overturned by the Nevada State Athletic Commission once he was suspended and fined $250,000 for the failed drug tests.
If this really is the end of Lesnar’s UFC career, he has retired with a 5-3 (1) record overall, including his previous stint as champion from 2008 until 2010.
Lesnar, 39, remains with WWE as one of the company’s top superstars. He is set to meet Bill Goldberg at WrestleMania 33 in April.
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This article originally appeared on Fox Sports.