Felipe Costa’s breakout year in grappling has hit a major roadblock.
After an impressive run that saw him win bronze at ADCC 2024 and claim his first IBJJF No-Gi World Championship title in the heavyweight division, Costa has now been stripped of that world title and handed a one-year suspension from IBJJF competition.
The reason? A failed drug test.
The United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) announced that Costa tested positive for Clomiphene – an anti-estrogen drug commonly used to counteract the side effects of anabolic steroid use.
While not a performance enhancer on its own, Clomiphene is banned under USADA regulations due to its potential to mask other prohibited substances.
According to the agency, the drug was taken under medical guidance…
But Costa did not secure a Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE), making his use of the substance a violation.
The failed test came following his gold-medal win at the IBJJF No-Gi World Championship in December 2024, one of the few IBJJF events that includes official testing.
As a result, Costa’s suspension is being applied retroactively from December 30, 2024, ruling him out of all IBJJF-sanctioned competitions until the end of this year.
Alongside the suspension, Costa’s world title win has been nullified.
Although the IBJJF hasn’t issued a formal statement yet, standard procedure in these cases means the gold medal will now go to the original runner-up, Faris Ben-lamkadem, while Calon Sabino will move up to silver.
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