A remarkable five round heavyweight slug-fest between Mark Hunt and Antonio Silva has today been tarnished after ‘Bigfoot’ was found to have had elevated levels of testosterone during the ‘UFC Fight Night 33’ bout.
Silva has now been suspended for nine months and has had to hand over the $50,000 bonus he earned for being in the ‘Fight Of The Night’ at the show in Australia.
The fight, which was originally declared a majority draw, has also now been overturned to a ‘no contest’ ruling.
‘Bigfoot’ had been granted permission for a ‘Therapeutic Use Exemption’ leading into the fight which meant he could legally use ‘Testosterone Replacement Therapy’, but this is not a license for a fighter to drastically elevate their levels, they still have to remain within normal boundaries, and in this case the Brazilian was found to have gone beyond that.
Silva has failed a drugs test before, testing positive for steroids back in 2008 after a victory over Justin Eilers in the Elite XC promotion.
However, in this latest instance, ‘Bigfoot’ has protested his innocence, claiming that he had no knowledge that his levels has been elevated and that this was purely down to his doctor.
“Months before my fight I looked for the UFC doctor Marcio Tannure in Brazil so I could start the hormonal replacement “TRT” which was authorized and recognized by a professional,” Silva stated on his Facebook page. “I started the treatment and 2 weeks before my fight I did all the exams required by the UFC.
“My testosterone level continued to be low so I was recommended by the doctor to increase the dosage. Unfortunately my level increased too much and caused me to suspend. I only did what was recommended by someone trained who understands about the subject therefore it was not my mistake. I’m cool because I know that the mistake was not made by me, I never tried doing anything wrong for my fight.”
