MIES, SWITZERLAND - Italian MotoGP rider Andrea Iannone has been provisionally suspended after testing positive for a banned substance, the governing body FIM said on Tuesday.
It said a urine sample provided by the Aprilia rider at the Malaysian Grand Prix on November 3 had shown an "adverse analytical finding of a non-specified substance under Section 1.1.a) Exogenous Anabolic Androgenic Steroids."
Iannone, the winner of the 2016 Austrian Grand Prix, can request the analysis of his B sample, and he can be present when it is investigated.
"The Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM) has advised Italian Grand Prix rider Andrea Iannone that he is provisionally suspended pursuant to Article 7.9.1 of the 2019 FIM Anti-doping Code (CAD)," the FIM said in a statement.
"The decision to provisionally suspend Mr Andrea Iannone was mandatory following the receipt of a report from the WADA accredited laboratory in Kreischa b. Dresden (Germany) indicating an Adverse Analytical Finding of a non-specified substance under Section 1.1.a) Exogenous Anabolic Androgenic Steroids (AAS) of the 2019 Prohibited List, in a urine sample collected from him at an in-competition test carried out by the FIM at the round of the FIM Grand Prix World Championship held in Sepang, Malaysia on 3 November 2019."
lannone's MotoGP future in doubt
The suspension puts Iannone's MotoGP future in doubt, with his contract with Aprilia running until the end of the 2020 season.
Iannone, who joined the team last year, has struggled to match team mate Aleix Espargaro for the majority of the 2019 season.
He finished with 43 points to Espargaro's 63, and his best finish was sixth place at the Australian Grand Prix at Phillip Island.
Iannone's positive test marks the first official case of a potential doping offence in the grand prix paddock since 2012, when Moto2 rider Anthony West tested positive for methylhexanamine. West had his Moto2 results over an 18-month period voided retrospectively.