Andrei Arlovski accuses Francis Ngannou of taking steroids ahead of UFC 260

Andrei Arlovski has created a stir by accusing his former opponent, Francis Ngannou, of taking steroids ahead of UFC 260.

The UFC shared an appreciation post for Francis Ngannou in light of his upcoming title fight rematch against UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic at UFC 260. The post enlisted the names of UFC fighters that fell victim to Francis Ngannou's knockout power. One of the victims - veteran fighter Andrei Arlovski - took to the comments section and accused The Predator of taking steroids.

'Steroid f..k,' Andre Arlovski commented.

Andrei Arlovski is a Belarusian-American mixed martial artist and a former UFC heavyweight champion. Arlovski fought Francis Ngannou in January 2017, during the latter's initial title run in the UFC. Ngannou defeated Arlovski via first-round knockout to score the most high-profile win of his career at the time.

Andrei Arlovski's last fight was a second-round submission loss to upcoming British prospect Tom Aspinall in February 2021. Arlovski's accusation directed toward Francis Ngannou is a surprising act as the former champ has rarely resorted to trash-talking and sensationalism during his 22-year-long fighting career.

The accusation made by Andrei Arlovski does not hold ground as Francis Ngannou has never tested positive for steroids during the entirety of his fighting career.

Francis Ngannou arrived in the UFC in the post-USADA era

The UFC's anti-doping program was launched with USADA in June 2015 to ensure athlete safety and the integrity of the sport. Many fighters on the UFC's roster have been caught taking banned substances and subjected to stringent punishment since the program was launched. A degrading of many athletes' performances and downward career trajectories in recent times have given rise to speculation about the validity of some of their fighting records during the pre-USADA era of the UFC.

However, Francis Ngannou arrived in the UFC in December 2015, six months after the UFC anti-doping program was enforced. Ngannou's performance has only gotten better with time. There have been no instances of him avoiding or failing drug tests before or after fights.

Francis Ngannou is scheduled to fight UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic in the headline match of tonight's UFC 260 pay-per-view event. The fight is a rematch of their first fight in 2018 that Miocic won by unanimous decision.