UFC Fighter Ottman Azaitar Faces 26 Doping Tests After Abu Dhabi Protocol Breach

While boxers were prohibited from physically interacting with the outside world during their stay at "Fight Island" in Abu Dhabi in 2021 as part of UFC 257, Ottman Azaitar and his team had helped someone from the outside enter their room, thus violating the health protocol put in place by the UFC. This person had left a bag on the balcony of the Moroccan champion’s hotel.

"It was a really strange story, but to be honest, I was not at all involved in this whole story," said Ottman Azaitar. The contents of the bag aroused curiosity. This incident prompted the United States Anti-Doping Agency to closely monitor Azaitar, who was tested 26 times in 2021 compared to six this year. In an interview with MMA Underground, the Moroccan athlete’s manager revealed that there were potatoes in the bag.

The Moroccan champion also defended himself: ’Oh, OK, this guy had something in this bag.’ I don’t know what they expect me to have in this bag. I was afraid they might think there was something dangerous, but they thought there were banned substances and that’s why I was tested about 27 times last year. Very strange."

The Moroccan MMA champion had paid dearly for violating the organization’s health protocol: he had simply been fired. The fight between Matt Frevola and him at UFC 257 had been de facto canceled. In February, the UFC gave Ottman a second chance. This fight will take place on Saturday, November 12 at UFC 281 at Madison Square Garden in New York.