USADA pretests UFC's Dan Henderson and Ben Rothwell

Dan Henderson

The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency this past week tested two more fighters in connection with the UFC’s new anti-doping program, with veteran middleweight Dan Henderson and heavyweight contender Ben Rothwell getting visits in advance of their upcoming fights.

Henderson was tested twice while Rothwell was tested once.

Rothwell (35-9 MMA, 5-3 UFC), 33, meets Stipe Miocic (13-2 MMA, 7-2 UFC) at UFC Fight Night 76, which takes place Oct. 24 at 3Arena in Dublin. It’s the first time the veteran heavyweight was visited by USADA, though the additional scrutiny isn’t without precedent. In 2013, the UFC suspended Rothwell for elevated levels of testosterone after he allegedly mismanaged a therapeutic-use exemption for testosterone-replacement therapy.

Meanwhile, Henderson (31-13 MMA, 8-7 UFC), 45, is scheduled for a rubber match against ex-champ Vitor Belfort (24-11 MMA, 13-7 UFC) at UFC Fight Night 77, which takes place Nov. 7 at Ibirapuera Gymnasium in Sao Paulo. It’s the second time “Hendo,” who previously held exemptions for the now-banned TRT, has been checked. He initially was among 50 fighters included in USADA’s first phase of in- and out-of-competition testing.

Belfort, a two-time offender for banned substances, also was included in the previous round of tests, though like Miocic, he was not chosen for the latest one.

The UFC anti-doping program took effect July 1 and targeted a minimum of 2,750 drug tests per year, both in- and out-of-competition. The program, run by USADA, reportedly cost “multiple millions of dollars,” according to UFC officials.

So far, no UFC is known to have tested positive under the USADA program.

For more on UFC Fight Night 76 and UFC Fight Night 77, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.