Saturday’s title fight between Alistair Overeem and Brett Rogers at Strikeforce: Heavy Artillery is interesting for a number of reasons: 1) How will Overeem perform in a MMA bout against a higher profile opponent after primarily focusing on K-1 for the last two years; 2) Can Rogers bounce back after suffering the first loss of his career at the hands of Fedor Emelianenko; and 3) Will Overeem be able to pass the post fight drug test?

There has been vast speculation within the MMA community regarding Overeem’s muscular physique. Since winning the Strikeforce heavyweight title nearly three years ago, Overeem has essentially transformed himself into a living, breathing comic book character. Leading up to the bout, Rogers has openly questioned the validity of Overeem’s claim that the weight gain occurred without the use of performance enhancing drugs.

While it was assumed that both main event fighters would be automatically tested, Tim Lueckenhoff of the Missouri Office of Athletics revealed that there is no guarantee that either man will be screened for banned substances. Missouri randomly picks from a pool of all competitors for testing, so it is possible that Overeem could be overlooked.

To clairify, Lueckenhoff assures that fighter safety is paramount. Those who are selected must agree to the screening or face hefty punishment. While Overeem could potentially be skipped over in the random selection process, Missouri does have the right to specifically seek him out if they deem it necessary.

“The Missouri Office of Athletics is committed to insuring that MMA events are conducted in a fair and safe manner. Contestants are required to submit proof that they are not infected with the HIV virus or hepatitis B or C virus. In addition, we have authority to require any contestant to submit to a drug test or a medical exam. Failure to submit to the drug test, or pass the medical exam may result in our refusal to allow the contestant to participate in the bout, or we may take disciplinary action against their license. Information related to our directive that a contestant submit to a drug test or medical exam in not public information unless we file an action seeking discipline of their license.”

Regardless of the fight’s outcome, if Overeem somehow manages to avoid a drug test, MMA conspiracy theorists will have a field day.

UPDATE: Strikeforce CEO, Scott Coker, has revealed that, along with Missouri’s testing policies, the organization will also independently screen every fighter participating in the event. Either way, Overeem will not be able to slip through the cracks.

(Source: MMA Fighting)