UFC's Anthony Birchak: If USADA is going to scare me, it might as well test me

Anthony Birchak vs. Thomas Almeida

It wasn’t necessarily Anthony Birchak’s intention to critique the UFC’s drug testing process in Brazil, but that’s what ended up happening when he responded to a Twitter user who thought the fighters had been tested at UFC Fight Night 77.

“Someone said something, and I was like, ‘Well, that’s funny, because none of us got tested down there,'” he told MMAjunkie.

Birchak (12-3 MMA, 1-2 UFC) fought at the Nov. 7 event in Sao Paulo, facing red-hot prospect Thomas Almeida (21-0 MMA, 4-0 UFC). He gave the Brazilian a run for his money before a flurry of punches sent him reeling and a well-placed cross sent him unconscious to the canvas in the first round. (He described the experience in a previous story to MMAjunkie.)

Since then, however, he’s been irked about what he saw, or didn’t see, from officials at the event. That’s why he didn’t think twice about voicing his experience, though afterward, he was worried about backlash from the UFC.

“They’ve chopped heads for less,” he said.

First, it should be noted that Birchak’s statement that none of the fighters at UFC Fight Night 77 were tested isn’t necessarily an accurate one. In fact, he was only talking about the fighters in his locker room at Ibirapuera Gymnasium, which at the time only included light heavyweight Corey Anderson.

Birchak doesn’t know whether other fighters on the card were tested, because he wasn’t present backstage in their locker rooms. But he complains that the event’s overseeing athletic commission, the UFC-backed CABMMA, was more concerned about his hand wraps than drug testing, and to him that indicates the process isn’t being taken seriously.

“Usually what happens is we get off the bus when we get to the arena on fight day,” Birchak said. “We get to our ready rooms, and they pull us one by one into the testing area. We all piss in a cup, and they send us back and we gear up and get ready for the fight. That didn’t happen this time.”

The UFC and CABMMA declined to comment directly on drug testing procedures and referred questions to the promotion’s anti-doping partner, U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, which oversees a drug testing program implemented in July.

In a written statement emailed to MMAjunkie, USADA Senior Communications Manager Annie Skinner wrote, “We conduct intelligent testing, and create test distribution plans that focus on both in-competition and out-of-competition testing. One of the important parts of creating a successful anti-doping program is ensuring unpredictability, and we will focus on varying the times, places and events we are testing.”

For Birchak, though, his frustration lies in not being able to prove he’s a clean athlete. More than anything, he said, he’s angered when he thinks of the fighters he saw in Brazil that appeared to be doing the opposite.

“What pisses me off is I’m the one over here following the rules, and we’re not even getting tested,” he said. “So they’re scaring us by saying, yeah, we’re going to test you. There was a couple of people who blew up pretty big. I’m thinking they’re still getting IVs.”

USADA banned IV rehydration as a part of the UFC’s new anti-doping program. Fighters are now required to rehydrate orally after the event’s weigh-ins, which take place the day prior to an event. The switch has brought criticism from UFC athletes and industry vets who say the intention of the ban – to root out potential performance-enhancing drug use – is not in line with the realities of competing.

Birchak is a vocal advocate for IV rehydration, but he is also committed to following the rules. He said it’s not the first time he’s had to forgo the practice; in college, he said he submitted to hydration and skin-fold tests to ensure he was cutting weight correctly.

Others, he said, might not feel the same. He points to his opponent as one example of a fighter who looked unusually large for someone who’d rehydrated orally.

“Look how big Thomas was,” he said. “Almeida fluffed up big time. Gaining that much and filling out as much as he did … he looked like Skeletor at the weigh-ins. Then he came back and he had a full, bloated belly and was pretty big. Myself, I would say I drank two to three gallons of water and a couple things of coconut water. It takes a lot longer to process.

”Oral rehydration is the best way to rehydrate when time is not a factor. But when time is a factor, IV is obviously the best way.”

Birchak stops short of accusing Almeida of impropriety, but added, “If I knew that I wasn’t going to get tested in the back room, I would have used an IV, because the No. 1 priority for me is my health, and I don’t like scaring my family members and friends with one of the most brutal knockouts of the year.”

After taking Almeida’s right cross in the first round, Birchak folded against the cage. It was certainly one of the most violent knockouts seen in the UFC’s octagon this year.

While a post-fight brain scan was normal, Birchak noted it was the first time he did not use an IV to rehydrate after cutting weight and the first in which he was knocked out.

The result, however, is one he’s willing to live with. Ultimately, the UFC bantamweight wants an even playing field. While he’s concerned his message might not come across the right way, he figures the most direct way to get his questions answered is to make his experience public.

Although his lack of testing might reveal a more unpleasant truth about why he wasn’t selected, Birchak figures he would at least have a better idea of the intentions behind enhanced drug testing. Because right now, he’s questioning what they are.

“I’m hoping it’s because I’m just not that f-cking important,” he said. “Let’s chalk it up to, I’m a small fish in a big pond. If you’re going to scare the sh-t out of me with this IV ban, you might as well follow up with it.”

For complete coverage of UFC Fight Night 77, check out the UFC Events section of the site.