Josh Barnett’s past is littered with drug test failures at this point, which comes as a blow for such a talented and down-to-earth guy. Josh Barnett is a guy whose name should be known the world over for being one of the best Heavyweights of all time, but a failed drug test upon winning the UFC Heavyweight Championship from Randy Couture in 2002 saw him stripped of the title and cut from the organization.
When he chose to go to Japan the only men to beat him were prime Mirko Cro Cop and Big Nog, which really says a lot. Chances are, if he was in the UFC at that time, he would have been a reigning champion while having to deal with the lummoxes that populated the division for those years. Now he is finally back in the UFC, but Josh Barnett’s troubles still haunt him. Barnett had two failed drug tests while in the UFC and then a failed drug test that prevented him from being licensed by NSAC and led to the demise of Affliction, so the issue has been getting NSAC to license him to compete yet again.
According to Zach Arnold, he has been granted a provisional license thanks to some effort from the UFC. The UFC will pay for WADA testing for Barnett, which means random tests through 2014 to ensure that he’s clean.