If Mark Bocek hadn't retired by now, this most recent failed drug test would have probably sealed the deal.
Mike King, a contestant on season 19 of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF), has been cut from the ranks of Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) after he tested positive for the banned substance nandrolone following his loss to Cathal Pendred at UFC Fight Night 46 back on July 19, 2014 in Dublin, Ireland.
King's first and only fight inside the Octagon.
In a statement issued to MMA Fighting, King took responsibility for his actions and issued an apology to Pendred, as well as UFC President Dana White and CEO Lorenzo Fertitta.
He also says he will work tirelessly to redeem himself and hopes to prove he is worthy of a second chance down the road.
And even though he was up front about his transgressions and didn't try to run from them, that will be a tough battle to win, seeing as how the promotion is on a mission to rid the sport, and its offenders, of performance-enhancing drugs (PED) and other banned substances.
As added punishment, King was suspended for nine months and will have to return the $50,000 in bonus money he won for his "Fight of the Night" performance.
Ouch.
It's important to note that Kevin Casey -- who stopped Bubba Bush via technical knockout at UFC 175 on July 5, 2014 -- was popped for drostanolone, also an illegal steroid, just last month. While he too was suspended, he is still currently on the UFC roster.
Question is, why the discrepancy?