Ex-Heavyweight Champ Brock Lesnar Also Failed In-Competition Drug Test at UFC 200

Former heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar also failed an in-competition drug test at UFC 200, according to a statement released by the promotion on Tuesday.

It was initially revealed on Friday that Lesnar was facing a potential anti-doping policy violation stemming from an out-of-competition sample collected on June 28, although the results were not processed by the WADA-accredited UCLA Olympic lab on July 14, five days after the conclusion of UFC 200.

According to the latest statement, Lesnar’s sample tested positive for the same substance on both occasions. It still remains unknown the substance for which Lesnar tested positive. The UFC’s full statement is as follows:

The UFC organization was notified today that the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) has informed Brock Lesnar that his in-competition sample collection from July 9, 2016, at UFC 200, has tested positive for the same substance as his previously announced out-of-competition collection on June 28, 2016.

USADA, the independent administrator of the UFC Anti-Doping Policy, will handle the results management and appropriate adjudication of this case. It is important to note that, under the UFC Anti-Doping Policy, there is a full fair legal review process that is afforded to all athletes before any sanctions are imposed. The Nevada State Athletic Commission also retains jurisdiction over this matter as the sample collection was performed at UFC 200 in Las Vegas.

Consistent with all previous potential anti-doping violations, additional information will be provided at the appropriate time as the process moves forward.

Lesnar returned to the Octagon for the first time since December 2011 at UFC 200, where he garnered a unanimous decision triumph over Mark Hunt. The UFC waived the four-month notice normally required by USADA of an athlete coming out of retirement in order to allow Lesnar to compete at its bicentennial event, although he was tested on a regular basis once his comeback was announced.

The South Dakota native is supposed to return to World Wrestling Entertainment at SummerSlam in August, but his UFC future -- even prior to the failed drug tests -- is unclear. Lesnar recently offered only a brief statement to The Associated Press last week when word of his initial anti-doping violation broke.

“We will get to the bottom of this,” Lesnar said in a statement.

The 39-year-old heavyweight is facing a potential two-year suspension if his appeal is not successful.