Breaking: UFC Releases Ovince St. Preux After Second PED Violation
Perennial UFC light heavyweight contender Ovince St. Preux has been released from the promotion following his second USADA violation. The long-time 205-pound contender had been competing in the UFC since April 2013. During his 10-year period, St. Preux had 26 fights in the octagon. He had a professional record of 26-17.
St. Preux’s removal was first reported by the automated Twitter bot @UFCRosterWatch earlier today. Interestingly, he was pulled up by the USADA for failing a drug test a few days ago. According to a USADA statement, the 40-year-old reportedly tested positive for a long-term metabolite of either androstenedione and/or testosterone. This was the second time the Haitian-American failed the anti-doping test.
After his violation, Ovince St. Preux was handed a reduced 6-month suspension. The reason behind his lenient punishment was that he successfully submitted samples of tainted supplements, proving that his intake was unintentional. Due to this, the drug-testing agency gave him only six months instead of the usual two years.
While the USADA went easy on him, the UFC did not. St. Preux has been on a dismal run of form over the last few years. He is 2-4 in his last six outings and lost his last fight against Philipe Lens via first-round knockout. Add that to his second PED violation, and Ovince St. Preux was promptly shown the door.
During his UFC tenure, Ovince St. Preux faced some world-class opponents like Jon Jones, Mauricio Rua, and Jamahal Hill. He is notably famous for executing the rare ‘Von Flue’ submission move. The grappling technique is essentially used to counter the guillotine choke and requires side control over the opponent. St. Preux pulled off the impressive feat four times in his career, with many renaming it – The OSP Choke.