Ranked MMA fighter gets four recent wins overturned due to repeated drug violation

The French MMA Federation (FMMAF) is seemingly taking drug violations very seriously. French featherweight standout Damien Lapilus recently had four of his wins overturned due to repeated drug-related offences.

While three of those fights were overturned to a loss for Lapilus, one was overturned to a no contest due to a drug violation from his opponent Kaynan Kruschewsky as well. Steven Kelliher of Tapology reported on Twitter:

"French MMA Federation not screwing around when it comes to anti-doping. Damien Lapilus has had four recent bout results overturned due to repeated violations, resulting in four Disqualifications and a No Contest (when his opponent also tested positive.)"

As per Tapology, Damien Lapilus ranks number 1 among 85 active featherweight fighters in France and 465 in Europe Western. 'The Walking Dead' also reportedly ranks number 1 at lightweight in both regions.

Lapilus represents the MMA Factory in France which is run by Ciryl Gane's coach Fernand Lopez. All four of his overturned fights came under the banner of Lopez-owned promotion Ares FC. 'The Walking Dead' won the vacant Ares FC featherweight belt back in March with a first-round stoppage win over Marco Beltran, which has now been overturned.

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When does the result of an MMA fight get overturned?

The result of a fight can be overturned when an athlete fails a drug test and in some cases, lands a fight-ending illegal blow. While there have been several cases of eye pokes, fence grabs and other offences going unchecked, fights have been overturned due to bizarre rules like Jon Jones' 12-6 elbow against Matt Hamill.

In cases of drug test failures, the result can either be overturned to a draw or a loss for the offender, a rule which has its own loopholes. Nick Diaz's loss against Anderson Silva was overturned to a no contest despite 'The Spider' testing positive for two PEDs while Diaz tested positive for marijuana.

In a recent example, KSI's boxing win over Joe Fournier was overturned to a no contest due to an illegal elbow. Meanwhile, UFC featherweight Cody Stamann has promised to appeal his UFC Charlotte loss against Douglas Silva de Andrade.