Cung Le tests positive for HGH

Discussion in 'MMA' started by Saved_in_Blood, Oct 1, 2014.

  1. Saved_in_Blood

    Saved_in_Blood Valued Member

    http://www.mmafighting.com/2014/9/30/6876375/cung-le-tests-positive-for-hgh-at-ufc-fight-night-macao

    Sad, I thought he was a pretty straight shooter.

    Former Strikeforce middleweight champion Cung Le tested positive for excess levels of Human Growth Hormone (HGH) in a post-fight drug test following his fourth-round TKO loss to Michael Bisping at UFC Fight Night 48, promotion officials announced on Tuesday.

    Le (9-3) is expected to serve a nine-month suspension retroactive to the day of the event, August 23, as a result of the failed test.




    UFC officials released the following statement:


    UFC middleweight Cung Le tested positive for an excess level of Human Growth Hormone in his system following his fight at UFC Fight Night in Macao, China on August 23. Due to his positive test result, Le was suspended by the UFC and notified that he violated the UFC Fighter Conduct Policy and Promotional Agreement with Zuffa, LLC. The UFC has a strict, consistent policy against the use of any illegal and/or performance-enhancing drugs, stimulants or masking agents by our athletes. Le will serve a nine-month suspension and, at its conclusion, will need to pass a drug test before competing in the UFC again.

    As with most UFC events held overseas, all pre- and post-fight drug tests at UFC Fight Night 48 were conducted by the UFC itself. In the case of UFC Fight Night 48, both Bisping and Le were subject to enhanced blood and urine drug testing following their fight.

    Throughout the lead-up to fight week, Bisping expressed repeated concern over the enhanced physical appearance of the 42-year-old Le.
     
  2. Hannibal

    Hannibal Cry HAVOC and let slip the Dogs of War!!! Supporter

    Can't say I am entirely suprised, but I am saddened
     
  3. Saved_in_Blood

    Saved_in_Blood Valued Member

    Yeah, he looked so much leaner and just like a different person.. it was pretty obvious something had been used. I guess we all hope sometimes that the fighters we like are actually doing things the honest way. So much pressure in competition to stay straight when many others are doing it.
     
  4. aaradia

    aaradia Choy Li Fut and Yang Tai Chi Chuan Student Moderator Supporter

    :( So very disappointing.................
     
  5. Southpaw535

    Southpaw535 Well-Known Member Moderator Supporter

    Was a bit obvious though. Someone his age looking as shredded as he did against Bisping was always a bit suspect
     
  6. Brian R. VanCis

    Brian R. VanCis Valued Member

    Ahhhh..... athlete! Have we ever not known an athlete to try and get and edge? Particularly an older athlete!
     
  7. ShadowHawk

    ShadowHawk Valued Member

    thats why he looks so young
     
  8. Saved_in_Blood

    Saved_in_Blood Valued Member

    I don't think that has much to do with it. Yes HGH does help reverse the aging process some, but Le has always been in good shape and i'm sure has always eaten well and because of his darker complexion that all helps with aging. My dermatologist always tells me if you want to look younger... stay out of the sun as much as you can.

    I don't think Le has been on it long though... it wasn't like in his last fight he looked like that iirc at least.
     
  9. belltoller

    belltoller OffTopic MonstreOrdinaire Supporter

    I'm gobsmacked - When he released a pre-fight photo showing his new-found musculature, I was always the one defending him against accusations of PED's.

    "No, no...Cung is an honest fighter. Ya canna stand to see an older man with more muscles than you have. " I recall saying to someone.

    Very, very disappointed.
     
  10. Xue Sheng

    Xue Sheng All weight is underside

    Damn!

    That is rather sad news...not surprising considering his age and sport...but still sad
     
  11. Saved_in_Blood

    Saved_in_Blood Valued Member

    Hopefully he's disappointed in himself for doing it at least.
     
  12. belltoller

    belltoller OffTopic MonstreOrdinaire Supporter

    And what did he gain by it? Maybe, in the end, he's redeemed by becoming the 'poster boy' for a Just say 'no' to PEDs programme. I canna think of a better way to send a clearer message than this.


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    I do hope Cung recovers, as I still like him, and reaches for the higher ground.


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  13. Saved_in_Blood

    Saved_in_Blood Valued Member

    It helps some... doesn't always help others. I guess it depends on the reason for it's use. Either way to use it to gain a competitive edge it's morally wrong. If you are to old to fight, you're to old to fight... there's no shame in that.
     
  14. icefield

    icefield Valued Member

    I suspect the use has as much to do with his movie career than just his fighting, he needs to be in the best possible shape for the films he makes, and he wouldn’t be the first actor to use PEDS to aid his career
     
  15. Bobby Gee

    Bobby Gee Valued Member

    You could definatly see a change in his body. He looked brutal.
    Bit of a shame. But I think he should keep on with the hgh and quit fighting.
     
  16. belltoller

    belltoller OffTopic MonstreOrdinaire Supporter

    Seems Cung has taken great issue with the suspension in a way that suggests he's more focused on clearing his name than on getting back into the fight game - which looked rather a dodgy gameplan even before the suspension.

    He argues a plausible case from my standpoint - but I know nothing of how HGH works, the ins and outs of it as a PED, etc.,.

    I hope (his explanation) is true and he's cleared at the end of the day - though its very difficult to look at the sus'd pose in the same light.

    He really is a different sort - donates his sponsorship money to Vietnamese orphanages, set up children's clinics with proceeds from his films, etc.,. all with very little fanfare - so little that its largely unknown by the general public - there is a lot that just doesn't fit the type of person Le is - certainly not the "win at all costs" type of MMA star.


    Cung Le as quoted from a written statement sent in to MMA Junkie ( the irony here )

    Some of the written statements I've seen are longer and more detailed than this one - which seems a highly abridged/condensed version of his original statement.

    Is is possible pure excercise and a healthy diet can achieve this in a 42 yr old without PEDs ?



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  17. Southpaw535

    Southpaw535 Well-Known Member Moderator Supporter

    I'm always cautious about going off photos. There's too many ways to manipulate them. For example, I know that in a certain light and at a certain angle I can make it look like I have a 6 pack and a generally decent amount of muscle. But I also know that that's not the case for an average picture. That said, he looked shredded in the actual fight which is the important part. I don't know enough about this to say what his statement means though.
     
  18. Saved_in_Blood

    Saved_in_Blood Valued Member

    No, it's really not possible.

    In short... HGH is a combination of 193 amino acids. Many of them you can get through proteins, carbs, etc. That causes growth when we are kids and young adults.

    The pituitary glands "pulses" throughout certain times of the day or night in a normal person... usually it's most common at night. As you get older the body puts out less and less of GH because obviously once you are fully developed, there's no more need for growth.

    Certain exercises and other methods can up our natural output, but not enough to do what synthetic HGH does ie. the picture above.

    Cung Le was using the stuff because it's very hard to detect, I would imagine however that there were so many questions about his huge physique change that they likely decided to do a much better and more expensive test that happened to catch him.

    Athletes worked hard 40 years ago... but look at their physiques. I know science and such helps, but that much??

    Look for a pic of Stallone in his 60's and you'll see their physiques look very much alike... Stallone just admits he uses GH.
     
  19. Late for dinner

    Late for dinner Valued Member

    really? REALLY?

    Ok, I don't know what to say except that I hope as previously mentioned that there is a reasonable explanation and that clears Cung's name.

    Just a point.. I am almost 57 and even before I started doing too substantial a weight program I could make myself look pretty pumped. I'm not quite as developed as he is but I also don't have the time, money and supplements that he probably has access to.

    Can you really say that looking at someone's muscles that you can determine whether they have been PED user's or not? I would be surprised if it were true.

    LFD
     
  20. belltoller

    belltoller OffTopic MonstreOrdinaire Supporter

    ^ Wins Most Plausible post of the thread. So, it wouldn't be unusual for an athlete to take HGH alone and not in combination with anything else, then?

    Seems so much the Midas Touch. Nature is usually quite vindictive when it comes to circumventing natural order on a sustained basis.

    I'd think at some point, there'd be a due date on that loan with stiff interest - big health problems, significantly shorter lifespan...something that will hurt.
     

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