UFC heavyweight Greg Hardy was controversially stripped of his victory over Ben Sosoli last night because he used an inhaler between rounds.
Viewers were left stunned by Hardy's decision to use the inhaler during the Boston bout, which could have meant that he violated anti-doping rules.
Officials took the swift decision to turn Hardy's unanimous decision victory into a no contest.
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Hardy, 31, used the inhaler in between the second and third rounds, and in a statement he claimed that his team asked permission before using it.
He said: "I was in the ring, me and my coach asked the commission if it would be OK to use my inhaler and they said yes, so I took it.
"I'm still a new guy in this sport. I did what I do in every situation - I asked permission, I got permission and I did what I was told."
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Hardy is unlikely to land himself in trouble with the UFC or the US Anti-Doping Agency, according to Yahoo Sports.
They quote UFC vice president Jeff Novitzky as saying that the inhaler likely contained Albuterol or Salbutamol, and both are allowed at times.
A fighter is not allowed to exceed 800 micrograms during a 12-hour period, and each puff of the inhaler is around 90 micrograms.
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Former NFL player Hardy turned to MMA in 2017 and had three amateur fights before turning pro the following year.
He lost his UFC debut in January 2019 after being disqualified for an illegal knee on Allen Crowder.
He since bounced back with wins over Dmitry Smolyakov and Juan Adams and looked to have made it three wins in a row on Saturday night.
But his 30-27 unanimous decision was scrapped, meaning the bout was deemed a no contest.
Featured Image Credit:Topics: UFC
