Volkanovski’s coach weighs in on cheating accusations: ”Something was going on there”

Coach Eugene Bareman comments on Dan Hooker’s accusations against Islam Makhachev. Photo USA TODAY Sports 

In the aftermath of this past Saturday’s UFC 284, reigning lightweight champion Islam Makhachev was accused of cheating in his title fight against Alexander Volkanovsk.

Fellow UFC lightweight fighter Dan Hooker claimed that Makhachev was using intravenous (IV) therapy to replenish after the weigh-ins, which is illegal according to USADA rules.

At a recent appearance at The MMA Hour, Volkanovski’s coach Eugene Bareman gave his thoughts on the situation.

“We have reliable information to a point,” Bareman said. ”The information falls short because for several reasons, and one of them is that you can actually take an IV before a fight. It just has to be 100 ml of saline every 12 hours, in a 12-hour block. So what it has to come down to is whether you believe that people are going to take this saline, 100 ml, and then stop.”

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Coach Eugene Bareman: “It’s frustrating”

Bareman didn’t completely dismiss Hooker’s claim, but advised him to not comment on the situation, even though the coach himself felt like something was weird about the whole thing.

“It’s frustrating because the whole sport should be played on an even playing field. Then again, you can’t reliably say that Islam cheated, so I wouldn’t go out there and say that in the manner that Dan did. That’s just—I don’t think you can reliable say that. But something was going on there,” Bareman said at The MMA Hour.

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