NAC Suspends Hector Lombard One Year

Hector Lombard’s failed post-fight drug test at UFC 182 for designer steroid desoxymethyltestosterone (DMT) is going to cost the aging fighter a year out of the cage.

The Nevada Athletic Commission (NAC) suspended the welterweight, who beat Josh Burkman by decision at the January 3 event, a full year at today’s (Mon., March 23, 2015) hearing in Las Vegas. Lombard was also fined his win bonus and an additional 33 percent of his purse, totaling $68,900 in fines.

His win over Burkman was also officially changed to a no contest. Lombard originally had a fight scheduled against Rory MacDonald at April’s UFC 186, but the bout was cancelled when news of his failure arose.

Appearing before the council, Lombard issued an apology to the UFC, his family, fans, sponsors, and Burkman. He did not deny that DMT was in his body, and admitted that he had handled his own nutrition prior to fighting Burkman.

Lombard also asked the commission to grant him leniency because of his previously clean track record, noting that he has never knowingly taken steroids (quotes via MMAFighting.com).

“I have never knowingly put a prohibited substance into my body. That being said, just prior to my fight, I took a substance which I believe to have been acceptable to use. I relied on people I trusted to provide me with the correct information, and I take full responsibility for not getting more information about this product prior to my use.

“I ask this commission to take into account that I have never failed any previous drug test in all my of fighting, including all my years as an Olympic athlete. I am truly embarrassed and sorry for my actions. This will never happen again. As an older fighter, I do not have many fights left in my career, and I hope that I can use this time to help younger fighters to become more educated about people they trust.”

Lombard’s story went that he had received Z-pak medication, which contained the banned substance, from a friend to help him combat a case of the flu during UFC 182 fight week. He acknowledged taking the substance directly after the official weigh-ins on January 2, but stressed that he would not have done so had he known the medication was banned.

“If I would’ve known they were illegal, I wouldn’t have taken it. It was so stupid on my behalf,” Lombard said. “I trusted in a person who I should not trust. I messed up.”

But the commission wasn’t buying Lombard’s explanation, handing him a full yearlong suspension that will date retroactively back to UFC 182, making him eligible to fight on January 3, 2016 at the earliest.

“Showeather” tried to put his best foot forward and apologize for his admitted wrongdoings, but ultimately the NAC chose to take the hardline stance of making an example out of him in order to prove that their new war on performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) in MMA is a serious one.

There’s still a ton of work to be done in the fight against PEDs, but those fighters who use them saw just how hard commissions will potentially come down on them today.