Strikeforce women's featherweight champion Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos has apologized for a failed drug test, but she's blaming a dietary supplement for it.
As MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) reported on Friday, Santos was suspended one year and fined $2,500 after failing a test at a Dec. 17 Strikeforce event.
Today, the 26-year-old Brazilian fighter issued a statement, though she denies she knowingly took any banned substances.
Santos tested positive for stanozolol metabolites (an anabolic steroid) following her "Strikeforce: Melendez vs. Masvidal" victory over Hiroko Yamanaka in San Diego. The victory, which would have been her 11th straight (and ninth via knockout), has been overturned and ruled a no-contest.
Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker issued a statement that called for the administrative process to play out, but UFC president Dana White later said Santos would be stripped of the belt (and that Strikeforce's entire 145-pound women's division could be abolished).
In Santos' statement, she said she struggled to make weight during fight camp, and she said she used a dietary supplement that may have unknowingly had a banned substance.
Her full statement:
Quote:
I would like to sincerely apologize to Strikeforce, the Zuffa organization, Hioko Yamanaka and my fans for my failed drug test.
I am ultimately responsible for everything I put in my body, and at the end of the day, there is no excuse for having a prohibited substance in my system. I do not condone the use of any performance enhancing drugs by myself or any other professional athlete, and willingly accept the penalties and fines that have been handed down to me by the California State Athletic Commission and those of the Strikeforce/Zuffa organization.
While I was preparing myself for my last fight, I was having a difficult time cutting weight and used a dietary supplement that I was assured was safe and not prohibited from use in sports competition. It was never my intention to obtain an unfair advantage over Hiroko, mislead Strikeforce, the commission or my fans. I train harder than any fighter in MMA and do not need drugs to win in the cage, and I have proven this time and time again! My only mistake is not verifying the diet aid with my doctor beforehand, and understanding that it was not approved for use in the ring. Unfortunately in the end I suffer the consequences and must accept the responsibility for my actions.
I will do everything I can to show my fans that I can still compete at the professional level without the use of any prohibited substances, and ask God's forgiveness for my mistake.
I am ultimately responsible for everything I put in my body, and at the end of the day, there is no excuse for having a prohibited substance in my system. I do not condone the use of any performance enhancing drugs by myself or any other professional athlete, and willingly accept the penalties and fines that have been handed down to me by the California State Athletic Commission and those of the Strikeforce/Zuffa organization.
While I was preparing myself for my last fight, I was having a difficult time cutting weight and used a dietary supplement that I was assured was safe and not prohibited from use in sports competition. It was never my intention to obtain an unfair advantage over Hiroko, mislead Strikeforce, the commission or my fans. I train harder than any fighter in MMA and do not need drugs to win in the cage, and I have proven this time and time again! My only mistake is not verifying the diet aid with my doctor beforehand, and understanding that it was not approved for use in the ring. Unfortunately in the end I suffer the consequences and must accept the responsibility for my actions.
I will do everything I can to show my fans that I can still compete at the professional level without the use of any prohibited substances, and ask God's forgiveness for my mistake.
Santos (10-1 MMA, 3-0 SF) can appeal her suspension with the CSAC.
Source: Strikeforce champ Cris Santos apologizes for failed drug test, blames supplement