För ett par dagar sen anklagades forne titelutmanaren Jon Fitch för doping av Firas Zahabi. Fitch möter regerande Bellator-mästaren Rory MacDonald i helgen på Bellator 220: MacDonald vs. Fitch.
Under gårdagen gästade Fitch den populära podcasten The MMA Hour. Där berättade han om den negativa spiral som till slut fick honom att dopa sig. Fitch berättade att problem med familjen och ekonomin gjorde honom svag. Han fick dessutom reda på att fighters han mött genomgått TRT-behandling (testosterone replacement therapy). Även det faktum att Vitor Belforts testosteronvärden var skyhöga, men att han fick tävla ändå, fick Fitch att undra om han missade något.
“I fell down a spiral of depression, was struggling with my personal family life and finances. I got to a place where you could see other guys around you — I found out about guys who I fought who were on TRT, the therapeutic exemptions, I learned about Vitor Belfort’s testosterone being covered up and him being allowed to compete anyway. There were rumors of other guys, that happening too also. And then I was taking a 70 percent pay cut, at least 70 percent pay cut from going from the UFC to World Series of Fighting.
“So I was thinking, like, why am I holding myself to this standard and making less money and my family’s struggling? Just all kinds of excuses. Any kind of excuse to rationalize why it was okay to cheat against a cheater like Palhares. And I had no idea what I was doing. It was pure comedy, me trying to use this shit. I had no idea what I was doing. I didn’t even grapple that entire training camp because I was so sore from the injections, because I was doing something wrong. I’m not even sure what I was doing wrong. But yeah, that was probably the stupidest thing and the best thing that ever happened to me.”
Relaterat
”Testosteron hade ingen större effekt”
Vidare menar Fitch att när han väl använde sig av doping, närmare bestämt testosteron, märkte han ingen större skillnad. Enda skillnaden var en förhöjd sexdrift och att han såg bättre ut i spegeln. Men ingen förändring skedde vad gäller återhämtning, styrka eller snabbhet.
“I don’t that testosterone really does anything in a weight class sport, except make you look awesome,” sade Fitch. “I could eat garbage food and look awesome, and I had the libido of a 19-year-old. But other than that, I didn’t recover better, I wasn’t any stronger, I wasn’t any faster. I don’t think I was doing enough of it to get those benefits. But I think if you do do enough of it then you put on weight, and I’m not going to benefit from putting on 15 pounds of muscle. I’m not going to be able to get down to the weight class and be strong and be able to compete like that.
“So I really was confused with what people were doing, because I was trying to figure this all out online by myself, I’m sure I was probably doing some things wrong. But yeah, I don’t really see the benefits of it, and I think guys who are using [PEDs] are using it kind of as a crutch. I think it’s not the magic pill everybody thinks it is.”
Som avslutning säger Fitch att han tror Zahabi är rädd. Därför börjar han med bortförklaringar för MacDonald redan nu.
“I don’t know, maybe he’s scared,” Fitch said. “He’s already creating an excuse for his fighter losing. I don’t know, I don’t really care.”
Jon Fitch och Rory MacDonald möts den 27:e april i San Jose, Kalifornien. Matchen är en del av Bellators welterviktsturnering. Vinnaren möter Neiman Gracie som besegrade Ed Ruth.
Köper ni Fitchs bortförklaring om varför han dopade sig?
