There are two sides to every story, and Lyoto Machida isn’t letting a failed drug test sway his opinion of Anderson Silva, his longtime friend and training partner.
Like everyone else, Machida was surprised when he caught wind of the news that Silva had tested positive for steroids leading up to his main event bout against Nick Diaz at UFC 183. Not to mention, Nevada State Athletic Commission Executive Director Bob Bennett confirmed to ESPN.com February 17 that Silva had also failed his post-fight drug test.
Fans, friends, family and Silva himself have sat helplessly in recent weeks watching a masterpiece of a career go up in flames and dissolve into ashes.
Any form of an excuse or reason has fallen on deaf ears at this point. Silva continues to proclaim his innocence through statements released to the public, but none of these statements have offered any reasoning as to why the two steroids, Drostanolone and Androsterone, were found in his system.
Machida doesn’t have the answers, either. All he can do is support and stand by the man he has considered a close friend throughout his MMA journey.
“I’m very surprised, but I think he’s [Silva] a victim, he’s a story,” Machida said when speaking with MMA Digest. “I prefer not to talk about that because it’s a very difficult situation. I have a lot of confidence in Anderson. I know that maybe he doesn’t use that, but I’m in camp. He’s in America now. I haven’t talked to him for a while. I don’t know what happened. I prefer to stay away from this situation.”
The NSAC has already temporarily suspended Silva until an actual punishment is handed out at a future disciplinary hearing.
According to Bennett, per Sherdog.com, Silva’s representatives have inquired on the possibility of having the “B” sample of the first failed test taken to a different facility to be tested, but such a request isn’t permissible by the World Anti-Doping Agency’s procedures code.
However, Silva and his team have been welcomed out to the lab in Salt Lake City to witness the process in person to ensure the sample isn’t tampered with.
Bennett has yet to hear back from Silva or his representatives since the initial inquiry.
Jordy McElroy is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA writer for Rocktagon and FanRag Sports.
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