Josh Koscheck Asking For Olympic-Style Drug Testing For Bout With St. Pierre

By Mark Wayne | June 08, 2010

Josh Koscheck Asking For Olympic-Style Drug Testing For Bout With St. Pierre Whether they are grounded in jealousy, truth or somewhere in between, rumors have circulated for some time alleging that UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St. Pierre has found the success and dominance that he has because he is willing to employ illegal tactics to do so. From the infamous "Greasegate" incident, which stemmed from a UFC 94 bout with BJ Penn, to accusations of steroid use, St. Pierre has been accused of cheating for as long as he has been a dominating force in the UFC. Apparently, the rumors have been circulating long enough and have grown convincing enough that they have inspired "Rush's" next opponent, Josh Koshceck, to take a page from Floyd Mayweather Jr.'s book and request Olympic-style drug testing for their upcoming fight.



"From what I've heard from other fighters in other camps, yeah, [St-Pierre] has done steroids and HGH, possibly," Koscheck told MMAjunkie. "I don't know. This is just on hearsay information that I've gotten.

"B.J. Penn and his camp gave me a little phone call. They were saying, 'Yeah, he's on steroids. He's this; he's that.' I said, 'Yeah, there's a possibility.' The guy is pretty ripped all year round."

The fact that Koscheck was tipped off by St. Pierre's most ardent detractor should come as no surprise and certainly lends no credence to the rumors but Koscheck is convinced enough that he believes the stricter testing would be a good idea.

"I would love to do it; why not?" asked Koscheck. "I think Olympic-style testing would be great for our sport. At least you do it a couple times out from the fight. I think it will be a great idea."

For his part, the champion agrees. St. Pierre told MMAJunkie that he too thinks Olympic-style testing should be the norm in MMA.

"I have no problem; any time he wants," said St-Pierre. "I stand for that more than anybody else. I stand for this, and I just hope it's going to happen soon. I know a lot of people cheat in this sport, and it's unacceptable. I'm for random drug testing. There's nobody in the UFC that agrees more with random testing then me. ... Anything they want, I don't care. I give my body to science."

"Rush" maintains that he is not afraid of submitting to blood testing nor is he afraid of Koscheck and he scoffs at the idea that he has needed to break the rules in order to win.

"I'm not a coward," St-Pierre said. "Anyone that uses steroids is a cheater. I don't need to cheat to win. I am like I am, and I'm somebody that is not a coward. I'm not afraid of Josh Koscheck, and I don't need to cheat to beat him. I'm going to beat him by the book and using the right way."

GSP believes that stricter testing is not only a good idea but that it is necessary for MMA to maintain its integrity as a sport; he says that using steroids prevents the true best fighter from claiming victory.

"I just hope that it's going to happen and happen soon," St-Pierre said. "I want it to happen. I don't know who uses [performance-enhancing drugs]. I have no idea, and I'm not going to say any names, but I want it to happen soon. What's happening now, it's going to be bad. It's going to be like a certain other sport. I don't want to say the name of the sport, but it's not going to be the best fighter that wins the fight.

"Now, what makes a good fighter is a lot of genetics, the style, the skills, the heart. Now there is another factor that influences the fight: the team of doctors behind the fighter. This should not be an element that helps a fighter to win a fight. That's something I am against. It's not everybody that stands for that, and I don't. I think everybody should be testing like the Olympic Games."

Steroids, greasing, or not, Koscheck says that it makes no difference; when they fight, he is going to attack one of the few things that performance enhancing drugs cannot affect: his opponent's chin.

"I plan on making Georges stand toe-to-toe with me," Koscheck said. "This isn't going to be a wrestling match. I'm going to force him to stand-up with me because I believe he doesn't have knockout power. We've just got to pray to God that he doesn't grease up, and he gets off that juice so that we can equal things about it.

"I just want to let him know that if he's going to do that, it doesn't matter. I'm still going to beat you because it can't make the chin that much stronger. His chin's still weak."

If this is any preview, the upcoming season of The Ultimate Fighter should be rife with accusations and verbal potshots, giving fans plenty of time to get excited for the Koscheck-St. Pierre rematch that will come upon the show's conclusion.