Kelvin Gastelum won’t be competing any time before August 3 as USADA has suspended the middleweight for nine months due to failing his drug test before his match-up against Darren Till at UFC 244.
In a statement released to the press, the fighter tested positive for 11-nor-9-carboxy-tetrahydrocannabinol (Carboxy-THC) over the Decision Limit of 180 ng/mL, a urinary metabolite of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main psychoactive constituent of cannabis, marijuana, and/or hashish.
This isn’t the first time that the UFC fighter had failed a drug test as Gastelum was pulled from his bout against Anderson Silva at UFC 212 due to USADA finding high levels of marijuana metabolite Carboxy-Tetrahydrocannabinol (Carboxy-THC). His win against Vitor Belfort was changed to a no contest and he served a 90-day suspension.
Originally, Gastelum was set to be out of action for fourteen months; however, USADA took off five months due to the 28-year-old successfully completing a drug treatment program. As previously stated, he’ll be able to compete again on August 3, since his suspension is retroactive to the date of the drug test failure.
Last week, the Ultimate Fighter 17 winner revealed in an interview with MMA Fighting that he was recovering from a LCL injury and fans could expect to see him back inside the octagon sometime in July. Gastelum has expressed his interest in fighting Robert Whittaker, Jared Cannonier, or Jack Hermansson. Gastelum has yet to speak about his recent suspension.