The drug test from Alistair Overeem’s recent kickboxing match has apparently tested positive for a banned substance.
The former UFC heavyweight title challenger originally left kickboxing after he won the 2010 K-1 Grand Prix in Tokyo, Japan by defeating Peter Aerts. After closing out his UFC career with a loss to Alexander Volkov last year, Overeem announced he’d be making his return to kickboxing with GLORY.
In a surprising upset, the 42-year-old bested Badr Hari at Glory Collision 4 in October. That fight was a rematch of their 2009 bout where Overeem lost to the Moroccan via TKO in the semi-finals of the K1- World Grand Prix.
Unfortunately for “The Demolition Man”, it appears that victory over Hari is now in jeopardy after his drug test from the fight tested positive for a banned substance.
“Per [Lars van Soest], Alistair Overeem tested positive for a banned substance following his recent kickboxing win over Badr Hari. Overeem’s team is awaiting the results of a B sample and contend that the banned substance detected is not performance enhancing.”
Overeem Suspended For Failed Test In 2012
If it does turn out that Overeem is guilty of taking a banned substance, it won’t be the first time the 42-year-old has run into issues with drug testing during his time in combat sports.
After an MMA career that saw him compete for K-1, Pride, and Dream as well as win the Strikeforce heavyweight title, Overeem finally joined the UFC in 2011. He was immediately booked to fight Brock Lesnar and stopped the former heavyweight champion in the first round at UFC 141.
That win in his UFC debut earned Overeem a chance at the UFC’s heavyweight title against Junior dos Santos, but a failed drug test resulted in the Dutchman being pulled from UFC 146 after he was handed a nine-month suspension.
Although Overeem went on to have a long and successful career in the UFC that saw him challenge for the promotion’s heavyweight title in 2016, many fans continued to point to that drug test failure as an asterisk on his overall legacy.
In an interesting parallel to his arrival in the UFC, the 42-year-old’s win over Hari appeared to set him up as the next challenger for GLORY heavyweight king Rico Verhoeven.
This new development will almost certainly delay those plans and possibly scrap the fight altogether, as it did when he beat Lesnar and was expected to face dos Santos in his second UFC bout.
What’s your reaction to the news that Overeem tested positive for a banned substance after his recent return to kickboxing?