MMA Odds and Ends for Tuesday: BJ Penn off UFC 199 due to IV use

Time for your morning MMA headlines, and we’re going to kick things off with some unfortunate news. BJ Penn Removed from UFC 199 UFC Hall of Famer BJ Penn was pulled from his upcoming bout against Cole Miller at UFC 199 after admitting to IV use during an out of sample collection from USADA. IV use has been banned by the UFC as a rehydration method as well as for its potential to add performance enhancing drugs directly to the bloodstream. Penn was originally expected to face Dennis Siver before an injury to Siver opened the door for Cole Miller. Penn has not fought since a July 2014 loss to Frankie Edgar and has not won a fight since a November 2010 knockout victory over Matt Hughes at UFC 123.   Felipe Arantes (17-7-1, 2 NC) vs. Jerrod Sanders (15-2-0) added to UFC Fight Night 90 Brazilian Felipe Arantes takes on American wrestler Jerrod Sanders this July at UFC Fight Night 90 in Las Vegas. Both Arantes and Sanders are coming off wins. Sanders outwrestled Russell Doane over three rounds to pick up his first UFC victory while Arantes submitted Yves Jabouin in his bantamweight debut last August. I wouldn’t be shocked if this is a “loser leaves town” fight for Sanders, as his fighting style hasn’t exactly been the most crowd-pleasing thus far. Arantes will likely open as a hefty favorite as well due to his experience advantage, although he’ll have to fend off a significant amount of takedowns along the way.

Written by Brian Hemminger

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