Kayla Harrison`s impressive physical condition is undeniable, which might bother her upcoming opponent Julianna Peña. However, according to Harrison`s coach, this doesn`t mean the two-time Olympic gold medalist achieved her physique through illicit means.
Mike Brown, Harrison’s head coach at American Top Team, addressed Peña’s recent claims. Peña accused Harrison, currently ranked No. 1 at bantamweight, of using steroids and suggested she “cycles off of them before June 7,” the date of their co-main event fight at UFC 316. This isn`t the first time Harrison has faced such accusations.
Despite Harrison`s clean record with zero failed drug tests, Peña made the accusations, prompting a swift rebuttal from Brown.
Brown acknowledged Harrison`s unusual physique. “I mean I get it, she doesn’t look normal,” Brown told MMA Fighting. “But that’s how the world is. There are people who are not normal… There are freaks out there, and those freaks, they rise to the top of sports.” He added, “There are people that have abnormal builds in every direction… just because you’re not like that, doesn’t mean somebody else cannot be.”
Without providing any evidence, Peña contrasted Harrison`s appearance during her Olympic career, where Peña claimed she “looked like a girl” and was “very feminine,” with her current MMA physique, which Peña described as “super juicy and cut up.”
Brown pointed out that Peña failed to mention Harrison`s Olympic success was achieved competing at 78 kilograms (nearly 172 pounds), with same-day weigh-ins. Since transitioning to MMA, Harrison initially fought at 155 pounds before dropping further to the 135-pound bantamweight division in the UFC. Fighting at a significantly lower weight than her Olympic days naturally explains changes in her physique and appearance.
Brown suggested that while the “eye test” can sometimes indicate performance-enhancing drug use, Harrison`s appearance doesn`t fit the pattern of someone using illegal substances.
“The biggest indicator for me as somebody who’s clean is somebody who is stable,” Brown stated. “Their body looks the same over prolonged periods of time. [Kayla] is always the same. She doesn’t change… somebody who’s taking illegal substances, you can see. Their body changes in a week. You’ll see ups and downs in people taking testosterone or something like this.”
He emphasized, “No, she is 100 percent a clean athlete. Always has been, always will be. Doesn’t need it. She’s a freak among freaks. Not a normal athlete by any means. A special athlete.”
Brown acknowledged that Harrison`s exceptional natural gifts might make it hard for some to believe her physique is achieved naturally, but he vouches for the relentless hard work and dedication he sees her put in daily, confirming she takes no shortcuts.
While Peña might struggle to accept it, Brown believes her difficulty is simply due to the fact that she isn`t naturally built like Harrison – a reality that can be hard to face.
Brown concluded by stressing that naturally gifted athletes exist. “They’re out there,” he said. “People just think because they look at themselves and how they’re built and how they were brought up. That’s not the top of the food chain. There are people out there that are not normal.” He drew a parallel to other sports: “Just like in basketball, there are athletes that are [7-foot-6, 7-foot-7], there are athletes that are unbelievably muscular or athletes that have unbelievable conditioning that seems unworldly. Just because you can’t do it, doesn’t mean somebody else can’t.”
