Azamat Murzakanov, one of the top light heavyweights in the UFC, won’t be competing in the first quarter of 2025.
Combat Sports Anti-Doping (CSAD), the UFC’s anti-doping partner, announced Monday that Murzakanov is serving a six-month suspension after testing positive for LGD-4033 in a out-of-competition test taken on Oct. 8.
According to the CSAD’s release, the positive result stemmed from a “purported dietary supplement” that Murzakanov submitted — which was tested, and showed a low-level presence of LGD-4033, which was not listed as an ingredient on the label. Despite the tainted supplement, the suspension was given because it was not “third-party tested and certified.”
Additionally, this is Murzakanov’s second anti-doping violation since signing with the UFC, which doubled the suspension time from 90 to 180 days. In 2019, USADA — the UFC’s previous anti-doping partner — announced a two-year suspension for Murzakanov stemming from a 2017 violation ahead of his scheduled UFC debut. The 35-year-old eventually earned his way into the UFC on the Contender Series in 2021, and is now 4-0 with three stoppage wins inside the octagon.
The undefeated fighter’s suspension officially began on Nov. 1 and will be eligible to return May 1.
