"They were testing him at funky a** times" - Anthony Smith recollects the "only other time" he heard USADA go after a fighter at unprecedented hours like they did with Paulo Costa
UFC light heavyweight Anthony Smith recently shared his theory on why USADA tested Paulo Costa a few hours before he weighed in for his fight with Luke Rockhold at UFC 278.
In his appearance on The Michael Bisping podcast, Anthony Smith recollected the only other time a fighter received similar treatment:
"The only other time I've ever heard of them testing outside of those not allowed hours, and the only reason you would hear about it, is when they fail, it was [T.J.] Dillashaw. From what I understand, they were testing him at funky a** times because during those times, he was doing whatever he was doing. I'm not saying I suspect Paulo, but sometimes your diet can change, your testosterone level sometimes."
Watch Anthony Smith talk about USADA below:
Former bantamweight champion T.J. Dillashaw was suspended for two years by the USADA after testing positive for EPO (a recombinant human erythropoietin) before his fight against Henry Cejudo in 2019.
Costa, meanwhile, lashed out at the doping agency after revealing to the media that he was woken up early in the morning at six am by a USADA official, ahead of the weigh-ins for his fight with Rockhold.
'Borrachinha' also lashed out at the long-time drug testing agency for drawing blood from him at a time where he'd understandably be weak and exhausted.
The Brazilian was not too impressed with the treatment during his weight cut, for which president Dana White later apologized. White also added that the situation will never be repeated with a fighter.
Anthony Smith on USADA's testing hours
In the same interview, Anthony Smith elaborated on his understanding of USADA's mandated testing timings. According to Smith, there is a set window of time during the day where the agency has permission to test athletes.
"From what I understand, there's only certain hours that they [USADA] can test or there's certain hours they can't test. I think it's like a seven to ten like not before 7 am and not after 10 pm or something like that. So they have to get special permission within those hours. So, I don't know why they would have. I don't know if they're looking for something or if someone tipped them off or they're suspecting and I don't want to put that out there."
While testing has become an important aspect of the sport, the timing of the testing with Costa has come under the radar, especially as fighters dehydrate themselves heavily to make weight ahead of fights.
Fuck the the boss on Usada who sent their agents this morning at my sleep room 6 am to take my blood out!!! I was cutting weight very dehydrated and they wants took my blood ! Fuck those guys!!! I never been caught by usada test I don’t need this fuck shit https://t.co/dtFJQ61ezW
Costa returned to winning ways with a decision win over Luke Rockhold at UFC 278, but the controversy surrounding his testing prior to the match will be a talking point for fighters in the future.
Watch Dana White talk about USADA's policy below: