Did Islam Makhachev cheat against Alex Volkanovski? What are the IV rules regarding weight cuts?

Islam Makhachev has been accused of using unfair means in his UFC 284 title defense against Alexander Volkanovski on Saturday. Volkanovski's teammate from City Kickboxing, Dan Hooker, accused Makhachev of using intravenous (IV) injections to rehydrate before the fight.

Makhachev admittedly had a grueling weight cut leading up to the UFC 284 headliner. According to Hooker, there were reports of the Dagestani standout having used IV injections to replenish himself ahead of the fight.

Volkanovski himself had also alluded to Islam Makhachev's IV use in an interview leading up to UFC 284. As per USADA regulations, fighters can face a ban of up to two years if IV use is proven. According to their official website,

"Intravenous infusions and injections are prohibited as a method both in-competition and out-of-competition if the volume delivered exceeds 100 mL within a 12-hour period."

Fighters need a Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE) if the amount of fluid exceeds 100 ml in 12 hours.

Meanwhile, Islam Makhachev's co-manager Rizwan Magomedov denied all allegations of cheating, pinning it down to Hooker being a sore loser.

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Could Islam Makhachev have cheated with IV use?

While it is a lesser-known phenomenon, fighters have been using IV salines to rehydrate themselves for ages in the regional MMA scenes. The USADA brought an end to the practice in 2015 and even sent representatives to gyms to educate fighters on the ban.

Fighters at the ATT gym even seemingly had an argument with the representatives.

While IV rehydration remains the biggest bone of contention, the ban was originally intended to have other implications as well. USADA CEO Travis Tygart, during an appearance on The MMA Hour, claimed that IV infusions with someone else's blood could result in game-changing benefits.

Tygart further claimed that athletes had effectively used saline injections just before testing to alter their test results. Explaining the principal reason behind the IV ban, the USADA chief said:

"Because, putting a bag of saline over 50 ml, for example is the rule, would potentially mask or alter the blood testing that was done. And there were examples in there where athletes would put a bag of saline in their arm when they saw the blood collectors coming to collect their blood. And they just delayed reporting for 15 min. So, that was really the purpose behind the rule." h/t bloodyelbow.com

Even if Islam Makhachev did use IV to replenish, it is unlikely that he would have used it for more sinister purposes, being one of the most tested UFC athletes this year.