And it's all thanks to Chael Sonnen and his hypogonadism.
The California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) on Monday (April 9, 2012) passed an amendment that would allow mixed martial arts (MMA) fighters to apply for a therapeutic use exemption (TUE) for "medication needed to maintain health and not obtain an unfair advantage over an opponent during a match."
That includes marijuana and testosterone, which just so happen to be hot-button topics in the wake of failed drug tests by Nick Diaz (UFC 143) and Alistair Overeem (UFC 146).
But before you decide to spark another owl or guzzle a second helping of man-juice, be forewarned, the amendment has been passed but is still "months or years" from actually becoming state law.
Loretta Hunt at SI.com breaks it down after the jump:
For a testosterone exemption specifically, Dodd said an applicant would be asked to provide blood tests prior to (30 days before) and after a contest to ensure levels were within acceptable margins. Dodd said that all materials submitted would be reviewed by the CSAC’s medical advisory board, which added an endocrinologist to its ranks on Monday for such cases.
To be adopted into state law, the amendment’s verbiage must now be reviewed and approved by the Department of Consumer Affairs and then the state’s Office of Administrative Law, a process that could take months or even years, if it passes at all.
While TUE exemptions have been granted in the past on a case-by-case basis, like the one given to Dan Henderson in advance of his UFC 139 fight against Mauricio Rua, the Chael Sonnen drug test fiasco in the wake of UFC 117 prompted the commission to establish protocol.
Consider this a strong first step, but it still has a long way to go.
How many fight fans out there favor this type of legislation? Necessary evil? Or does it open the floodgates for every cheater who can wrangle a prescription?
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