Terrible news was released on Friday as former UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva was flagged by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency for a potential Anti-Doping Policy violation.
The UFC released the following statement via their website on Friday:
The UFC organization was notified today that the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) has informed Anderson Silva of a potential Anti-Doping Policy violation stemming from an out-of-competition sample collected on October 26, 2017. As a result, Silva has been provisionally suspended by USADA. Due to the proximity of Silva’s upcoming scheduled bout at UFC Fight Night, Shanghai, China on November 25, 2017 against Kelvin Gastelum, Silva has been removed from the card and UFC is currently seeking a replacement.
USADA, the independent administrator of the UFC Anti-Doping Policy, will handle the results management and appropriate adjudication of this case involving Silva. Under the UFC Anti-Doping Policy, there is a full and fair legal process that is afforded to all athletes before any sanctions are imposed. Additional information will be provided at the appropriate time as the process moves forward.
In 2015, Silva was suspended for one year after testing positive for the banned substances drostanolone, androstane, temazepam and oxazepam in multiple drug tests administered for his fight against Nick Diaz at UFC 183.
This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 11/10/2017.