Seven fighters from the PFL, including its 2022 light heavyweight champion, Rob Wilkinson, as well as ex-UFC title challenger Thiago Santos, have been handed fines and suspensions after they tested positive for banned substances. The Nevada Athletic Commission met on Tuesday and offered its verdict on each of the athletes after conducting drug tests. The fighters who received suspensions will be required to undertake clean testing before they can compete in Nevada again.

Wilkinson was found to have an unusually high testosterone-to-epitestosterone ratio and was discovered to have ingested an “androgynous source of testosterone, an anabolic androgenic steroid”. As a result, Wilkinson will serve a nine-month ban, which will end on Jan. 1, 2024. Wilkinson will also have to pay $7,500 in fines, in addition to prosecution fees amounting to $326, plus $495 for testing fees. His win over Santos has now been altered to a no-contest.

Meanwhile, Santos has been suspended for six months after testing positive for clomiphene which is predominantly used to treat infertility in women but can also have an impact on testosterone levels in males. Santos will be able to make a return to competition after Oct. 1, 2023, and has also been instructed to pay a fine of $12,500. He will also need to cover $407.50 in prosecution fees.

Rizvan Kuniev, heavyweight competitor, failed multiple drug tests and tested positive for drostanolone, metenelone, boldenone, 19-norandrosterone, all of which are anabolic steroids, and a separate stimulant which was found during his drug test. As a result of his failure, Kuniev will be suspended for one year and will not be permitted to compete until after April 7 of 2024.

Kuniev has also been served a fine of $9,000, $326 of which will go towards prosecution fees and $495 will be used to cover additional fees for testing. His win over Renan Ferreira has likewise been modified to a no-contest result.

Mohammad Fakhreddine tested positive for drostanolone, stanozolol, another anabolic steroid, and GW1516, a non-specified substance in the class of hormone and metabolic modulators banned at all times. As a byproduct of his failure, Fakhreddine has been banned for one year.