It has emerged this evening that reigning Invicta featherweight champion Cristiane “Cyborg” Justino has been flagged by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) for a potential doping violation according to the UFC.
USADA has informed Cristiane “Cyborg” of a potential Anti-Doping Policy violation stemming from an out-of-competition test on 12/5, per UFC.
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) December 22, 2016
This evenings news is a major setback to the Brazilian who had been campaigning for the UFC to open up a women’s 145lbs and a potential future super-fight with former bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey who will try to reclaim the title she lost against Holly Holm on December 30 when she takes on currently champ Amada Nunes.
Despite today’s shock announcement it is not yet currently known what substance the 31-year old Justino (17-1-1) recently scored a 2nd round TKO win over Lina Lansberg at UFC Fight Night 95 has been flagged for.
MMA Plus will be monitoring the situation and will bring more news on this developing story as we get it.
UPADTE: The Ultimate Fighting Championship have released the following statement:
“The UFC organization was formally notified today that the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) has informed Cristiane “Cyborg” Justino of a potential Anti-Doping Policy violation stemming from an out-of-competition sample collection on December 5, 2016.
USADA, the independent administrator of the UFC Anti-Doping Policy, will handle the results management and appropriate adjudication of this case. It is important to note that, under the UFC Anti-Doping Policy, there is a full fair legal review process that is afforded to all athletes before any sanctions are imposed.
Consistent with all previous potential anti-doping violations, additional information or UFC statements will be provided at the appropriate time as the process moves forward.”
