GSP camp clarifies drug-testing questions, trainer says GSP open to VADA or WADA

Four days after a report detailing a split between Georges St-Pierre and Johny Hendricks on drug testing for UFC 167, reps for the welterweight champ said their questions about a Nevada State Athletic Commission-approved and enhanced drug testing program were to eliminate any doubts he is a clean fighter.

Rodolphe Beaulieu and Firas Zahabi, who respectively manage and train the French-Canadian UFC welterweight champion, specifically said they wanted to prove the fighter isn’t taking human growth hormone (HGH).

“I just wanted to guarantee that the most highly effective drug is taken off the table,” Zahabi told ESPN.com. “We were asking for the highest degree of testing. We were just trying to be as honest and get the right answers. I think there was a misunderstanding and different opinions.”

Hendricks, as first reported by MMAjunkie.com, declined to participate in the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association’s program offered by St-Pierre in advance of the Nov. 16 pay-per-view event, which takes place at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand Garden Arena. The champ, in turn, hedged on participating in the NSAC’s enhanced program.

Zahabi announced on Sunday that the fighter should do both programs, which utilize WADA-accredited labs and conduct random, unannounced testing for banned substances.

“VADA & NSAC are both good but also have their pros and cons,” he wrote on Twitter. “Let’s do both test and make everyone happy. This is the plan.”

But according to Hendricks and his reps, the plan is to proceed as usual with commission-mandated testing, which often includes in- and out-of-competition testing.

In the buildup to the UFC 167 fight, St-Pierre offered to enroll them with VADA for out-of-competition testing at his expense. Hendricks’ rep, however, bowed out following a conference call set up by the UFC that included reps for both fighters, the promotion’s co-COO, and the head of the Nevada State Athletic Commission, who is tasked with regulating the event.

The parties were there to decide a course of action on enhanced testing, as was suggested by St-Pierre. But Hendricks’ manager, Ted Ehrhardt, said no to VADA when Zahabi reportedly claimed that the third-party testing firm was footing the bill of the program, which was first quoted at $20,000, but later lowered to $16,000 due to a shortened testing timeframe.

NSAC head Keith Kizer then suggested an enhanced-testing program utilizing a WADA-accredited lab in Salt Lake City, which was contracted for a title bout on Oct. 12 in Las Vegas between boxers Tim Bradley and Juan Manuel Marquez. Kizer said the UFC had contacted him prior to the conference call about the program’s potential use for St-Pierre vs. Hendricks.

The process broke down completely after a series of emails between Kizer and Beaulieu that were seen by all parties. In addition to stating that Zahabi had misspoke about VADA’s sponsorship of St-Pierre, Beaulieu asked a series of questions about the WADA-accredited lab’s testing procedures, including what drugs were being tested for.

Kizer was concerned about the inquiries and ultimately was unconvinced the manager was serious about enrolling in the NSAC-approved program. Kizer withdrew the offer and stressed that St-Pierre would be subject to the commission’s existing program.

In his interview with ESPN, Beaulieu said his questions were meant to clarify what St-Pierre was agreeing to with the NSAC program and what his rights were during the process, which he described as “an act of faith.”

According to VADA President Margaret Goodman, St-Pierre is enrolled in the program and has paid $16,000 to test both himself and Hendricks, $8,000 of which will be refunded with the title challenger’s decision not to follow. As to Zahabi’s claim of VADA sponsorship, she ventured it was “a miscommunication” and said the agency never agreed to pay for St-Pierre’s testing.

Goodman added that while Zahabi requested a quote on VADA’s costs on July 2, after July 15, she only dealt with Beaulieu and had never spoken to anyone on St-Pierre’s team prior to that.

One year ago, St-Pierre flirted with enhanced testing, including VADA and the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) prior to his title defense against interim champ Carlos Condit at UFC 154. Condit agreed to use USADA, but his reps said VADA “have certain relationships that would throw up red flags from our end.”

In an interview with MMAjunkie.com, Zahabi was unclear on the costs of enhanced programs and suggested the agencies should sponsor testing, as they did when St-Pierre’s training partner, Rory MacDonald, fought B.J. Penn at UFC on FOX 5.

“I think it will help clean up our sport,” Zahabi then said. “Now it’s up to VADA or another group to sponsor the fight.”

For more on UFC 167, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.

(Pictured: Georges St-Pierre)