Josh Barnett and his legal team released a statement regarding his positive test, 

The media has reported that Mixed Martial Arts Heavyweight fighter Josh Barnett would not be eligible to fight Fedor Emelianenko at Affliction Trilogy as he was denied his California license due to an alleged positive test for 2α-methyl-5α-androstan-3α-ol-17-one, which is purportedly a metabolite of a banned substance.

Mr. Barnett was shocked at these allegations and was extremely disappointed to learn that Affliction had made the hasty decision to cancel the August 1st event in its entirety. Mr. Barnett vehemently denies intentionally ingesting any banned substances in preparation for the August 1st fight and he is looking forward to presenting his case to the California State Athletic Commission.

In the meantime, Mr. Barnett has yet to learn of the results of the B sample testing and he has not received any of the documentation that provides further details of the alleged positive sample despite numerous requests. In fact, the documentation that Mr. Barnett has received raises serious questions about the integrity of the sample and the validity of the results themselves.

At this time Mr. Barnett would like to thank his fans and colleagues for their ongoing support and faith in him. He intends to vigorously defend himself against these allegations and hopes for a swift resolution to this matter so he can get back to what he does best - fighting!

I would like to further add that Josh is as disappointed as all of his fans and supporters that he will not be fighting on August 1st. He also empathizes with all of the other fighters that were scheduled to appear on the card and shares their frustration and shock at the cancellation of the entire event.

First of all, 2α-methyl-5α-androstan-3α-ol-17-one is a metabolite for an anabolic/androgenic steroid called Drostanolone. The only reason why Barnett would be taking it medically would be if he had breast cancer. With regards to the testing; drug tests actually test for the metabolite of a substance not the drug itself. For those that don't know what a metabolite is, it is a waste product from our metabolic cycle. In other words it is what the body leaves behind after processing the drug. 

It should be noted that we have not yet received word from Branett's B-sample and with the CSAC's troubled past there is always the possibility of a false-positive. WKR has been trying to acquire  the actual levels of  2α-methyl-5α-androstan-3α-ol-17 in Barnett's system for the positive test but the CSAC has yet to respond to our repeated inquires. 

There are several items about this statement that don't pertain to science behind the test that I would like to address. First, this statement is about a week late. Barnett needed to release this as soon as possible as he has completely missed the media cycle. Second, with Barnett's previous positive test the suspicion of a second positive test may be enough to ostracize him from competing in the United States ever again.

Finally, does this even matter?

Affliction as a promotion is dead. A fight with Fedor in the U.S. seems impossible even in the unlikely chance that the CSAC says the test was wrong or if Barnett wins the legal battle. While a legal victory for Josh could improve his legacy there will always be a long shadow cast over his career. 

Just another story to follow out of Affliction's demise.

Affliction: Trilogy coverage