Former UFC champion and all-time great Anderson Silva recently tested positive for the steroid Drostanolone in both a pre-fight out-of-competition drug test, as well as in his post-fight urinalysis. In addition, Silva also tested positive for Temazepam, which is used to treat sleep deprivation and Oxazepam, an anti-anxiety medication.
Silva was handed a temporary suspension by the Nevada Athletic Commission this past Tuesday due to the failed tests. Silva will have a full disciplinary hearing which is likely to take place in March.
Silva still refutes the drug test results and has a message for his fans.
Here’s what Silva had to say via his Instagram:
IN RESPECT TO MY FANS
I will not say anything about who I am or what I went through to get here.
What matters to me now is the respect from those who have followed my career.
I bled, struggled and fought because I love it and because I always wanted to honor the flag of the country I love so much.
I don’t know what to apologize for, because I am still waiting for the results and analysis from the specialists that are working to reveal the truth.
Everything that I took since my injury are being analyzed. I look for the truth as much as all those who were surprised with the results. I always played clean, I was never a cheater.
In eighteen years of my career, I never had a problem with exams. In and out of the Octagon I never slipped in compliance with the principles that always guided me. With much honor and dignity I defended my country where ever I fought. I never used any substances to better my performance in my fights. I love what I do and I would never risk what I took so long to build. I think that the hurry some people have to condemn me is unfair. The time it takes to destroy a reputation is infinitely less than that is taken to build it. I am the one who is most eager to settle this situation. I want those who have always supported me to know that I am still fighting for all the sad happenings of this situation to be cleared.