WEC’s Cole Province Tests Positive for Steroid

Remember, kids: it’s only cheating if you get caught. Following his win at Aug. 9’s WEC 42 event, Cole Province has tested positive for the oral steroid Methasterone, a supplement that can increase your ass-kicking ability but can also cause the unwanted side effect of liver damage. (Then again, so can a liver shot -- you pick your poison.) The Nevada Commission will reportedly give Province a chance to explain himself before handing down judgment, which could conceivably include voiding his win.

Methasterone -- otherwise known as Superdrol -- is a “legal” steroid in that it’s not a controlled substance, and anecdotal evidence points to it leaving the body within two weeks of discontinuation. Because it has some diuretic and metabolic effect, athletes typically eye it for purposes of maintaining or gaining mass while cutting weight for competition. And since it’s an over-counter product, Province may have been under the assumption that anything sold legally is legal in competition. (It’s not.)

It’s a blemish, but overall, the rate and frequency of drug test failures has decreased sharply from two years ago. (14 positives for performance-enhancers were recorded in 2007, 5 in 2008, and 4 so far this year -- thank you, CagePotato number-nerds.) Either the deterrent effect is working, or athletes are getting more clever in hiding use. Cole Province is not among the latter.