'Sandman' Irvin tests positive

Following his UFC Fight Night 14 bout against Anderson Silva on July 19, James Irvin tested positive for banned substances, the Nevada State Athletic Commission confirmed to MMAWeekly today.

Following the loss to Silva, Irvin submitted to a urinalysis, and the urinalysis reflected the presence of Methadone and Oxymorphone.

Oxymorphone is a pain reliever prescribed to alleviate moderate to severe pain. Methadone is most commonly prescribed to recovering heroin addicts or for the management of chronic pain.

None of the fighters who competed on the July 19 card were subject to the NSAC's out-of-competition drug testing policy, which could have been due to the event being put together on relatively short notice.

Eleven of the 22 fighters who competed on the card were tested at the event. Anderson Silva, James Irvin, Hermes Franca, Cain Velasquez, Brandon Vera, CB Dollaway, Tim Credeur, Frankie Edgar, Shannon Gugerty, and Nate Loughran were all tested for steroids, drugs of abuse, and stimulants. Irvin is the only competitor who tested positive for a banned substance.

Irvin has 20 days to formally respond to the NSAC. Previous cases of fighters testing positive for drugs of abuse in Nevada have typically resulted in suspensions of eight or nine months.