UFC
NSAC's Keith Kizer says Georges St-Pierre's camp refused NSAC-approved WADA testing for UFC 167 bout with Johny Hendricks
Sep 8, 2013 - 10:35:32 PM NSAC's Keith Kizer says Georges St-Pierre's camp refused NSAC-approved WADA testing for UFC 167 bout with Johny Hendricks

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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

There's a little controversy brewing over the supposed extra drug testing that Georges St-Pierre's camp was trying to set up for UFC 167. St-Pierre claimed he was willing to pay for VADA testing for he and challenger Johny Hendricks for the event, and a Canadian site too Hendricks to task this past week for not filing the paperwork.

However, Hendricks' team now says that St-Pierre was getting sponsored by VADA, not paying for it, so they tried to get GSP's camp to pay for NSAC approved WADA testing instead. St-Pierre's camp inquired about the testing, but NSAC executive director Keith Kizer says talks didn't progress very far.

"I made it quite clear that if you guys want to do additional testing on your own, that's fine," Kizer said in an interview with MMAJunkie.com. "But if you're serious about it and you're not looking to hire someone yourself to do it, I said, 'This is how you do it. We're happy to help you help us, but that's a decision you need to make because you need to fund it.'"

"They were asking, 'Well, what do you test for?' My answer is always the same: We test for prohibited substances as listed on the WADA list," Kizer continued. "(They said), 'Well, what does that mean? Does that mean HGH, does that mean this, does that mean that?' Yes, it means it all. The answer then should have been, 'OK.'"

Ultimately, Kizer says GSP's attorney, Rodolphe Beaulieu, said they were going to move ahead with VADA.

"OK, fine, use VADA. That's not the question," Kizer said. "The question is do you want to do outside testing through the athletic commission? And basically, they said we want to know all the tests you do so Georges' medical advisors can vet the test first before we decide.

"I said, 'I will take that as a no. We will let you know if we're going to do any testing on our own. Goodbye.' The guy actually had the gall – this Rodolphe guy – (to say), 'Well, no, that's not what we meant. We're happy to do it once we get this additional information, but I'm going to be done for the next seven days, and I'm unavailable via cell phone or email.' It's like, whatever dude. It was so ridiculous. But I don't hold any of that against Georges St-Pierre. As far as I know, he doesn't even know about these things."

"I don't know if it's just his people being overly aggressive, or trying to act as agents of VADA – I have no clue, and I don't care," Kizer added. "But when an athlete's representative is basically saying, 'Well, he's interested in perhaps doing enhanced testing, but we need to know – and more importantly, his medical advisors need to know – all the ins and outs of the testing before he'll agree to it,' that's a no. That's a refusal, and that's fine.

"Fighters are able to do this testing (from VADA). But I'm not looking to being used in this pissing match with these athletes saying, 'I'm going to do this enhanced testing. If my opponent doesn't, that means he's dirty.' No, it doesn't. If they want to play those games, that's between them. I'm not going to take any sides. Georges St-Pierre and Johny Hendricks have both been great licensees in the past. I expect them to be great licensees in the future. But they definitely both will be tested by the commission. How often, and when, is up to us."

Penick's Analysis: This is more back room wrangling than anything St-Pierre himself has done, but it doesn't make the Champ look great. At the same time, Kizer's being incredulous to questions which could simply be due diligence on St-Pierre's part. Especially if it's something he'd be paying for out of pocket. But Kizer paints it as something more insidious here, and that's what Hendricks and his camp will latch onto.