Could you give me insights on these questions please?
1) You often hear people say, "What fighter wouldn't use steroids in the UFC back then?" – apparently referring to a period just before Jon Jones emerged and dominated. Though I could be off, maybe the steroid era really hit its peak around 2010-2014, right around Jon’s prime. Before 2009, it didn't seem as widespread. Even GSP, who’s from the older generation of fighters, heavily criticized how rampant roids had become. So, which is it? Was steroid use a big issue before Jones, or did it blow up during his rise?
2) Fast forward a bit, and suddenly steroids became a huge concern for new athletes coming in – even for guys like Daniel Cormier. Meanwhile, you’ve got Chael Sonnen straight up admitting he was juiced to the gills against Jon Jones. Then, there’s the infamous TRT Vitor Belfort era, where the UFC, possibly, turned a blind eye to what seemed like obvious steroid use (I mean, the guy’s abs were unreal).
So, what changed the perception? It seems like the UFC was [perhaps, not sure] either treating it casually or actively ignoring it, but then, at some point, they flipped the narrative: "Oh my god, did we really let that happen? That's not what we stand for!"
It feels like it hit a breaking point where the abuse was so blatant that the UFC couldn’t ignore it anymore. Cue USADA stepping in – and the UFC, suddenly all about the integrity of the sport, is like, "Yeah, we need to crack down on this." And then, bam, steroids are now a scandal when they should’ve always been.
I may be off in the above about many stuff, but still, there was definitely a shift somewhere in the middle that explains how it went from being almost accepted to being a huge deal. Any insights on those in-betweens? Thanks btw
1) You often hear people say, "What fighter wouldn't use steroids in the UFC back then?" – apparently referring to a period just before Jon Jones emerged and dominated. Though I could be off, maybe the steroid era really hit its peak around 2010-2014, right around Jon’s prime. Before 2009, it didn't seem as widespread. Even GSP, who’s from the older generation of fighters, heavily criticized how rampant roids had become. So, which is it? Was steroid use a big issue before Jones, or did it blow up during his rise?
2) Fast forward a bit, and suddenly steroids became a huge concern for new athletes coming in – even for guys like Daniel Cormier. Meanwhile, you’ve got Chael Sonnen straight up admitting he was juiced to the gills against Jon Jones. Then, there’s the infamous TRT Vitor Belfort era, where the UFC, possibly, turned a blind eye to what seemed like obvious steroid use (I mean, the guy’s abs were unreal).
So, what changed the perception? It seems like the UFC was [perhaps, not sure] either treating it casually or actively ignoring it, but then, at some point, they flipped the narrative: "Oh my god, did we really let that happen? That's not what we stand for!"
It feels like it hit a breaking point where the abuse was so blatant that the UFC couldn’t ignore it anymore. Cue USADA stepping in – and the UFC, suddenly all about the integrity of the sport, is like, "Yeah, we need to crack down on this." And then, bam, steroids are now a scandal when they should’ve always been.
I may be off in the above about many stuff, but still, there was definitely a shift somewhere in the middle that explains how it went from being almost accepted to being a huge deal. Any insights on those in-betweens? Thanks btw
