Top-Ranked UFC Fighter Gets 9-Month Suspension for Drug Test That Scrapped Last Fight

Top-ranked UFC strawweight contender Iasmin Lucindo will be out of action until at least the summer after violating the promotion’s anti-doping policy.

Currently sitting at #7 in the UFC’s strawweight division, Lucindo was scheduled to close out last year by facing #10-ranked contender Gillian Robertson at UFC Vegas 112, which served as the final UFC card of 2025 before a six-week hiatus that ended with last Saturday’s UFC 324 card in Las Vegas.

The reason for Lucindo’s withdrawal from the fight was initially unclear, but now the UFC’s official anti-doping partner Combat Sports Anti-Doping (CSAD) has provided an explanation for both her removal from the fight and subsequent suspension.

Iasmin Lucindo Gets 9-Month Suspension From CSAD

According to the official statement from CSAD, an out-of-competition sample collected from Lucindo on September 24 tested positive for the banned anabolic agent mesterolone.

The CSAD report notes that Lucindo “cooperated fully” with the investigation after being pulled from her fight with Robertson. That process included interviewing Lucindo and going over the “official government documentation” provided from a Brazilian pharmacy where she obtained dietary supplements ahead of her positive test.

Iasmin Lucindo (blue gloves) prepares to fight Amanda Lemos (not pictured) during UFC 313 at T-Mobile Arena. | Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

While the investigation did establish that Lucindo likely “did not intentionally use mesterolone to gain a performance advantage”, the CSAD was also “unable to definitively conclude the low-level adverse finding resulted from a contaminated supplement”.

Lucindo Quickly Climbed UFC Rankings After Debuting In 2022

Due to Lucindo’s cooperation during the investigation and the evidence that she didn’t intentionally try to use mesterolone, the CSAD elected to hand out a nine-month suspension that will last from September 24, 2025 (the date the positive sample was collected) and end on June 24, 2026.

The suspension is an unfortunate setback for the 24-year-old, who already boasted 17 fights worth of professional MMA experience by the time she joined the UFC in 2022. After dropping a decision to Yazmin Jauregui in her promotional debut, Lucindo scored four-straight victories from 2023-2024, besting former strawweight title challenger Karolina Kowalkiewicz and earning a “Performance of the Night” bonus for submitting Polyana Viana during that run.

Amanda Lemos (red gloves) fights Iasmin Lucindo (blue gloves) during UFC 313 at T-Mobile Arena. | Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

That momentum was derailed by former title challenger Amanda Lemos at UFC 313 before Lucindo returned to the win column against Angela Hill last August, but now the 24-year-old will have to wait until the second half of the year to resume her climb towards strawweight title contention.

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