Bassil Hafez has announced that he has been suspended by the UFC after testing positive for a banned substance. He claims it was found inside the peptides he was taking while recovering from surgery.

The welterweight contender broke the news in an Instagram video before Combat Sports Anti-Doping (CSAD) officially revealed details about the failed test. According to Hafez, the positive result came after he went through three major surgeries this year while trying to recover from a lengthy layoff.

“Guys, I got some bad news,” he said. “I’ve been suspended by the UFC. I tested positive for a banned substance that was in the peptides I was taking.

“You know, my full and complete cooperation with CSAD, the UFC’s drug testing company, reflects that it was an honest mistake, that I had nothing to conceal. I had nothing to hide.”

Throughout the video, Bassil Hafez maintained that he never intentionally took anything illegal and that he fully cooperated with CSAD during the investigation. ‘The Habibi’ explained that he even gave the clinic prescribing the peptides a list of banned substances beforehand to avoid a situation like this.

“I’ve always done everything by the book,” he continued. “I even sent a list of all the banned substances that I shouldn’t be taking to the clinic that prescribed me the peptides. Um, and my negligence, it was in trusting them.

“We’re all human. We make mistakes. You know, I’ve passed 17 drug tests since I’ve been with the UFC since in 2023. Never have popped for anything, any banned substances, never taken any banned substances.”

Rather than hide the situation, Hafez said he wanted to speak publicly first so other fighters could learn from his mistake.

“I’m making this video to make sure that other fighters are aware of these types of things, and hopefully they don’t make the same mistake I did,” he added. “The negligence is definitely a big error here on my side.

“I’m the person that takes pride in my character, my integrity, my honesty, and most importantly, transparency. And so, I wanted you all to hear from me first.”

Bassil Hafez last competed in November 2024, when he lost to Oban Elliott at UFC 309. His only UFC victory to date came over Mickey Gall at UFC 302, and his competitive short-notice debut against future UFC champion Jack Della Maddalena earned him considerable praise despite the loss.

Still, the timing of the suspension could become a serious problem for his future with the promotion. Between surgery, inactivity, and now the failing drug test, ‘The Habibi’ has been away from the Octagon for nearly two years.

And, with the UFC recently aggressively cutting its roster short, many fans are asking if the promotion would actually keep him around once the suspension officially ends. In fact, several other names in the promotion could also get axed, since Bassil Hafiz has joined a long list of fighters who got suspended for taking a banned substance this year.

Fighters who got suspended so far in 2026

Bassil Hafez is far from the only UFC fighter dealing with suspension issues this year. 2026 has already been a brutal year for anti-doping violations across the roster, with several fighters from various divisions being flagged for banned substances ranging from steroids to masking agents and testosterone-related compounds.

1. Mohammed Usman

One of the biggest cases involved Mohammed Usman, the younger brother of former UFC champion Kamaru Usman. The heavyweight was given a massive 30-month suspension in January this year after testing positive for exogenous testosterone, with anti-doping officials also accusing him of deceptive conduct during the investigation. The UFC released him from the roster shortly after.

2. Iasmin Lucindo

About two weeks after Usman’s suspension, the UFC stated former top-10 strawweight Iasmin Lucindo’s nine-month suspension for testing positive for mesterolone after the CSAD admitted that supplement contamination most likely played a role in the failed test. The suspension also pulled her from her December 2025 fight against Gillian Robertson.

“Throughout CSAD’s investigation, the evidence collected indicated that Lucindo did not intentionally use mesterolone to gain a performance advantage,” CSAD officials stated. Unlike Usman, Lucindo’s suspension is retroactive back to September 24, 2025.

The list just keeps going.

3. Alibi Idiris

Idris received his twelve-month suspension at the end of March after he tested positive for hydrochlorothiazide, a prohibited at all times diuretic in the Diuretics and Masking Agents class of the UFC Prohibited List. The in-competition sample was collected on February 21, 2026, in Houston, Texas, before the UFC Fight Night card. Idiris’ win that night against Ode Osborne has been overturned to a no contest.

UFC’s statement on him read, “Although Idiris has been fully cooperative with CSAD, CSAD is not suspending or reducing any period of his ineligibility due to the seriousness of knowingly using a diuretic during fight week and the advantage that he received in making his contracted weight.”

Maryna Moroz (July 17, 2025 – July 17, 2026) and Ramazonbek Temirov (July 5, 2025 – July 5, 2026) were retroactively suspended last year for different banned substances. Both of them will be eligible to compete again in July this year.

Moroz and Temirov both took medications that contained prohibited substances, but fully cooperated with CSAD after testing positive. Since their violations had no intent to establish a competitive advantage and came from medical prescriptions, the rulings were lenient.

So, while Bassil Hafez argues that his situation was an honest error tied to recovery peptides, it is only after the CSAD’s formal announcement that we’ll get to hear the full story behind the suspension.