However, it would appear that the bout is going to be canceled again as Barnett has reportedly failed a pre-fight drug test conducted by the Mohegan Sun Athletic Commission.
Fight Oracle was the first to report the news, which has since been confirmed by several other news sources:
*BREAKING* @JoshLBarnett has been been flagged by the Mohegan Sun Athletic Commission for a banned substance. Barnett has been removed from Bellator next month at Mohegan Sun. He was scheduled to fight @RonnyMarkes.
— Fight Oracle (@fightoracle) February 22, 2020
So contrary to some claims, @BellatorMMA does have out of competition drug testing in several jurisdictions. All of their European events, California, Connecticut.
— Fight Oracle (@fightoracle) February 22, 2020
This is the fifth time Barnett has failed a drug test in his professional MMA career, as he previously failed tests twice during his first run with the UFC, one time during Barnett’s time with Affliction, another test during his final run with the UFC and now this one with Bellator MMA. It should be noted that Barnett’s third failed test with the UFC later led to a reprimand from the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) instead of a suspension because the substance Barnett took was later determined to be contaminated.
Barnett and Markes were scheduled to meet late last year at Bellator 235, but Barnett fell ill on the day of the show and the bout was canned.
There has been no comment yet from either Barnett or Bellator MMA, it is also unknown as to what kind of punishment Barnett could be facing.
