Only one fighter has been tested more than the Notorious.
Conor McGregor is the most tested of the current top 15 pound for pound fighters in the UFC since the beginning of the UFC Anti-Doping Programme last year.
The programme began on July 1, 2015 and since October 1 2015, the testing aspect of the programme was further emphasised, with all UFC athletes required to have their whereabouts on file with USADA.
Whereabouts information is used to implement the full out-of-competition strategic testing plan, and allows athletes to be located at any time for no advance-notice out-of-competition testing.
Ever since that date, data shows that McGregor is the most tested athlete in the pound for pound rankings with 16 tests in total.
He was tested eight times at the tail end of 2015, when he defeated Jose Aldo in Las Vegas, and has been tested eight times so far in 2016, having already contested two fights against Nate Diaz and set to go face to face with Eddie Alvarez on November 12.
Data collected by Twitter user @dimspace from information available on the UFC website here shows that only Dan Henderson, in any division, has been tested on a greater number of occasions than ‘The Notorious’.
Big names such as Anderson Silva, Vitor Belfort and Rafael Dos Anjos have all been tested 15 times over the same period (click on picture for enlarged image).
#UFC #USADA test data by division and ranking (19th October) pic.twitter.com/AF72ft0cxx
— Dave/Dim (@dimspace) October 20, 2016
When taking the numbers into account, it is worth bearing in mind that McGregor has fought three times since October 1, 2015.
In the same timeframe, for example, the number one pound for pound fighter, Demetrious Johnson, has been tested six times, but has only fought once, against Henry Cejudo in April of this year.
By way of comparison with other sports, meanwhile, according to USADA data, McGregor has been tested twice as often as LeBron James in 2016.
Swimmer Ryan Lochte (13 times in 2015, 12 so far in 2016) has been tested a little more often, while Tyson Gay, who has previously tested positive for a banned anabolic steroid, has been tested nine times this year and 15 times in 2015.
McGregor takes on Eddie Alvarez in the much-anticipated UFC 205 event, the first of its kind to be staged in New York.
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