Alex Volkanovski’s coach explains why Islam Makhachev used BANNED IV drip before UFC title fight

UFC identity trainer Alex Volkanovski has broken his silence to reveal why he believes Islam Makhachev was allowed to use a banned intravenous drip ahead of his title fight against the Australian last Sunday.

Eugene Bareman refrained from calling the Russian Makhachev a cheat but felt the 31-year-old enjoyed a clear advantage against ‘The Great’ in Perth.

Makhachev won a gripping match at UFC 284 to retain his lightweight belt and improve his career record to 24-1.

But post-fight allegations that Makhachev illegally used an IV drip to rehydrate after losing weight have soured his epic victory.

After another of Bareman’s fighters, UFC lightweight Dan Hooker, expressed his feelings on the result and Makhachev was well known in Twitter, the New Zealand-based mentor tackled the acrimonious drama himself.

He revealed that Makhachev may have used a loophole in the rules that would actually allow him to legally use an IV before the fight.

Islam Makhachev’s victory over Alex Volkanovski at UFC 284 was marred by allegations that he used a prohibited intravenous drip before their title fight.

Eugene Bareman, who trains Volkanovski (pictured), did not call Makhachev a cheater, but felt the 31-year-old had a clear advantage at UFC 284.

“We have reliable information up to a point,” Bareman told The MMA Hour.

“The information falls short for a number of reasons, and one of them is that you can actually take an IV before a fight. It just has to be 100ml of saline every 12 hours, in a 12 hour block.

“So it all comes down to do you think people are going to take this saline solution, 100 ml, and then stop.” [all together].

‘And the fact that from that [Russian] There were two wrestlers on the team…the data cannot reliably tell us yet which wrestler illegally hydrated or exceeded 100ml.

‘But I don’t know, no information can tell us for sure that someone on your team used an IV to rehydrate, which is not illegal if you used 100ml.

“You just have to ask yourself if you only have to use 100ml for 12 hours, why would you bother?”

Bareman has his doubts, but added that it would be a challenge to prove whether Makhachev or his training partner Zubaira Tukhugov misused an IV.

“Either it was Zubaira or it was Islam, something happened there,” he said.

Dan Hooker accused the Russian fighter of hiring a nurse to receive an IV drip to rehydrate

Makhachev won a gripping matchup against Volkanovski at UFC 284 to retain his lightweight belt and improve his career record to 24-1.

‘It’s frustrating because all sport has to be played on a level playing field.

“On the other hand, it cannot be reliably said that Islam cheated.”

Previously, the use of an IV drip to rehydrate was common in combat sports, but it was banned in the UFC in October 2015 following a USADA decision. news.com.au informed.

USADA officials introduced the ban because IV drips can contribute to a great deal of weight loss and can also be used to mask performance-enhancing drugs.

UFC fighters face bans of up to two years for using intravenous drops without a medical reason.