Khalil Rountree suspended for self-reported positive test, but UFC 307 main event goes ahead

The main event of UFC 307 is cleared to go ahead without incident after Khalil Rountree was suspended on Thursday.

An official punishment was given by the Nevada Athletic Commission during its monthly meeting, but the time will expire before Rountree’s Oct. 5 fight against light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira in Salt Lake City.

Rountree, 34, was suspended for 4.5 months and fined $157.04 in prosecution fees as part of a settlement agreement approved by commission members. The commission praised Rountree, who was present at the hearing, for self-reporting the matter and cooperating throughout the process.

“I’m glad it came out, and the self-reporting obviously had a big influence on the committee’s decision here,” said CNA President Dallas Haun. “I applaud him for self-reporting.”

Rountree accepted the opportunity to speak and thanked the committee for their investigation into the matter.

“I just want to thank you guys for looking into the details of the problem,” Rountree said. “It has definitely made a huge difference in everything going on in my life right now. Thank you so much for taking the extra time to go over the details.”

The UFC internally suspended Rountree for two months through its Combat Sports Anti-Doping program for the May 4 doping test failure. Rountree submitted a urine sample that tested positive for DHEA with anabolic steroids.

According to CSAD, Rountree self-reported accidental ingestion of a mixed supplement containing DHEA. A May 4 sample tested by the Sports Medicine Research and Testing Laboratory (SMRTL) was consistent with Rountree’s claim.

Rountree was the first to publicly announce the setback, which led to his removal from the June 29 UFC 303 co-main event against Jamahal Hill.

Through documentation provided by Rountree, CSAD confirmed that a supplement company sent the fighter “therapeutic blend” products “without prior approval.” CSAD wrote that the owner of the supplement company called the error “a massive oversight on our part.”

“CSAD has determined that Rountree’s actions after determining the error and the evidence of this case fit these criteria and therefore CSAD is reducing the sanction against Rountree to 2 months,” CSAD said in a statement.

The doses Rountree ingested were not considered to have significant performance benefits, CSAD said after consultation with SMRTL.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 307.

This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Khalil Rountree suspended for self-reported positive test, but UFC 307 main event goes ahead