Conditioning coach Rogerio Camoes blames tainted supplements for Anderson Silva’s most recent drug test failure that forced him out of UFC Shanghai.
For the second time in his UFC run, Anderson Silva tested positive for a banned substance. After failing the out-of-competition test administered by the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) on October 26th, “The Spider” was pulled from his scheduled November fight against Kelvin Gastelum in Shanghai, China.
Following this incident, Silva released two statements but never really gave a concrete reason. On Tuesday, the camp finally broke their silence through conditioning coach Roger Camoes, who appeared on Brazilian TV show Revista Combate.
“I’m with Anderson for many years and the first thing he said was, ‘Master, I didn’t take anything. I trust his word because Anderson is very mature and experienced, he has the conscience not to take anything that would compromise being suspended or taint his image,” Camoes said (via MMA Fighting).
“We believe in some contamination in some supplement. Every product he used, supplements, will be analyzed so we can prove there was a contamination. It’s a slow process, it’s not overnight, and it requires time and money. It’s very expensive.”
Silva’s name was already tainted by his first drug test controversy in 2015, which was later blamed on sexual performance medication. His contemporaries such as Michael Bisping believe this second one may have destroyed what’s left of the former long-time middleweight champion’s legacy.
But for Camoes, the 42-year-old Silva would still be able to bounce back and carry on with his career.
“I believe he will (come back),” Camoes said. “In life, when someone is taken away from you, that’s when you want it the most. The thing he wants the most is fighting. I believe he will come back to fighting.”
“There will be a penalty or course, we know the USADA rules, and even with a contamination, it’s the athlete’s responsibility what he takes and you have to be careful with that. We’re waiting for something to know which path we will go after all this.”