NSAC: 9 PFL fighters banned for failed drug tests

The Nevada State Athletic Commission has officially acknowledged nine PFL fighters tested positive for banned substances last month, during the promotion’s opening round of matchups for its 2023 season.

Last week, the Nevada commission placed all nine fighters — including former UFC title challenger Thiago Santos and former PFL champion Bruno Cappelozza — under indefinite suspension, pending disciplinary action. The commission did not reveal any details on the nature of each fighter’s offense at that time. At its meeting Wednesday, however, the commission revealed all of the suspensions were due to failed drug tests.

Three of the nine accepted their respective suspensions from the NSAC on Wednesday. Featherweight Alejandro Flores was suspended six months for testing positive for the diuretic furosemide. Light heavyweight Krzystof Jotko and Cappelozza were each suspended nine months for testing positive for clomiphene and drostanolone, respectively. All three were fined a percentage of their earnings as well.

Heavyweight Rizvan Kuniev, light heavyweights Mohammad Fakhreddine, Cezar Ferreira and Will Fleury, featherweight Daniel Torres, and Santos will all appear at a later date. Santos, who was arguably the PFL’s biggest offseason acquisition between the 2022 and 2023 seasons, tested positive for clomiphene.

The PFL has already made massive changes to its regular-season matchups in the wake of the nine suspensions. The promotion also released a statement last week saying it was considering implementing a random drug-testing program with the United States Anti-Doping Agency, the same agency that oversees the UFC’s year-round program.