UFC Heavyweight Hamdy Abdelwahab Suspended 2 Years for Methenolone

A promising young Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight has just hit a huge snag in his career.

On Friday, the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency announced that Hamdy Abdelwahab failed a post-fight drug test on July 30, 2022, for methenolone, an anabolic steroid. Additionally, before USADA notified him of his failure, they tested him again on August 27 of that year, and once more he had methenolone in his system. Due to the lack of notification on USADA’s end, the two failed tests will be considered one violation, and he will receive a two-year suspension effective the July test date.

Abdelwahab made his debut on short notice at UFC 277 on July 30, and he defeated Don'Tale Mayes by split decision in a thriller. The agency requires that fighters entering the testing pool disclose any substances they have taken in the last year, so that they can sit out until testing clean without suffering a penalty. If fighters do not disclose a substance they have taken prior to competition, and then test positive for it, USADA considers it a “tampering violation.” The rationale, according to the drug testing agency, is that Abdelwahab knew he was taking this banned substance and also knew that he was required to disclose it, but decided against doing so.

As Abdelwahab failed his drug test in Texas, additional sanctions from the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation may follow. Per commission documents, his win over Mayes has been overturned as a result.

USADA's statement regarding Abdelwahab reads as follows:

”USADA announced today that Hamdy Abdelwahab, of Bronx, N.Y., has accepted a two-year sanction for violations of the UFC® Anti-Doping Policy.

“Abdelwahab, 30, tested positive for methenolone (metenolone) and its metabolite (3α-hydroxy-1-methylene-5α-andostan-17-one) as the result of a sample collected in-competition on July 30, 2022, and a sample collected out-of-competition on August 27, 2022. Because Abdelwahab was not yet notified of his first positive test when his second test was collected, the two positive tests are combined into a single violation. Methenolone is a non-Specified Substance in the class of Anabolic Agents and is prohibited at all times under the UFC Anti-Doping Policy (the Policy) and UFC Prohibited List.

“Upon being added to the UFC Anti-Doping Program, athletes are required to declare prohibited substances they have used in the previous 12 months and the failure to make such a declaration, absent a compelling justification, is considered a tampering violation under section 2.5.2 of the Policy. Abdelwahab did not declare the use of methenolone on his onboarding declaration forms and did not establish a compelling justification for his failure to do so. Based on USADA’s investigation, it was determined that Abdelwahab used the prohibited substance and knew of his obligation to declare it. The evidence constitutes a tampering violation in addition to the violation for his positive test for methenolone.”