“I don’t think he’s going to fight soon,” Dana White said about Yair Rodriguez. Turns out, the issue was not injury or health related, or even about a failed drug test.

According to Marc Raimondi, the Mexican Featherweight has been suspended by USADA over a whereabouts violation.

Yair Rodriguez suspended by USADA till March

Yair Rodriguez has not failed a drug test, but he has failed to turn up for sample collection on three different occasions over a period of 12 months.

As per rules regarding whereabouts violations, USADA handed Yair Rodriguez a six-month suspension.

Brett Okamoto soon added that the suspension runs back to September 8, 2020, which makes Yair Rodriguez available for his next MMA bout in March 2021.

USADA released a statement on the matter:

However, USADA also added that Rodriguez was eligible for a sentence reduction because his conduct was not suspicious to the USADA officials in respect of whether he was trying to avoid being tested or hide usage of any banned substance.

Dana White on Yair Rodriguez

Taking questions at the UFC Vegas 15 post-fight conference, Dana White was asked about Yair Rodriguez’s current status and why his fight with Zabit Magomedsharipov has once again been cancelled.

Dana White asked an associate off-camera whether UFC has publicly talked about the matter, and why not.

His words seemed confusing at the time, but now it makes sense that Rodriguez will be out of the octagon for a considerable period of time.

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