Richman puts a (hopefully steroid-free) whooping on Jeremy Spoon Bellator 76.
It’s a scenario we’ve seen play out dozens, if not hundreds of times in mixed martial arts: A fighter rockets to the top of his division with a string of strong performances and is rewarded with the biggest fight of his life, a title fight, in front of the biggest audience he has ever competed before. Feeling that his game might not quite be at the level it needs to be, said fighter resorts to certain…chemical enhancements to give him that extra boost.
Whether said fighter fell back on those enhancements to deal with a nagging injury, or to shed those last few pounds, or simply out of the fear of getting his ass kicked on national television is a moot point. When given the option of cheating to gain an advantage, he took it. Then the fight happens, said fighter either wins or loses (he loses more often than not, ironically), and said fighter’s drug test results come back positive for steroids/diuretics/etc.
Unfortunately for the fans of said fighter, this is where the truly shameful behavior begins: The rationalization/denial phase. Rather than own up to his wrongdoing like an adult, said fighter blames it on his doctor, or an over-the-counter drug, or the fricking sauna at the fricking gym, or simply denies it outright. Whatever content of character said fighter had left after the positive test is thereby eradicated on account of his own stubbornness, and MMA superfan Little Jimmy Pocket loses another idol.
But not Bellator bantamweight title challenger Mike Richman, who tested positive for an undisclosed PED following his loss to champion Eduardo Dantas at Bellator 137 last month…
Rather than opt to blame the commission, his doctor, or the lab who handled his sample, Richman owned up to his steroid usage outright, labeling himself “a cheat” who “deserves every bit of backlash and hate I’m going to receive” for his positive test in a message posted on his Facebook page last night. And oddly enough, he has earned at least one guy’s respect in doing so. (*points to self*) This guy’s.
In Richman’s own words:
In regards to my positive test results for an Anabolic Steroid. I want to say that I lost the integrity in myself and the integrity of this sport. I will not sit here and deny that I took it or act like I didn’t know what I was taking or blame it on someone else. I am a cheat, plan and simple and there is no excuse or reason that is valid enough to dispute the reasons why I cheated the sport and myself by using it. I want to apologize to Bellator MMA for my actions. I want to apologize again to my hard working Teammates who are not cutting corners and busting their asses off everyday in the gym to better themselves. I want to apologize to My head MMA coach Greg Nelson for making him and his gym the Academy look bad. He had no knowledge of me using at all. I want to make the same apology to my S&C coach Matt Miller of Horsepower strength and conditioning, he also had no knowledge of my use of this Anabolic Steroid.
I apologize to all my sponsors that support me, my family that loves me, and my friends and fans that cheer for me. I deserve every bit of backlash and hate I’m going to receive from the media and the fans of this great sport. I take full responsibility in my actions and the decisions I made. I also deserve the punishment the CA state athletic commission brought down upon me.
That punishment, as it turns out, will be a $2,500 fine and a two-year suspension from the sport (dem new steroid policies, doe…). The news of Richman’s positive test comes after the Minnesota native was nearly pulled from the title fight altogether after weighing in some three pounds over the bantamweight limit, and could indicate that Richman was in fact dealing with a nasty injury that kept him out of action in the weeks prior to Bellator 137. Still, major props to Richman for claiming to have no excuses for his actions and not immediately following up with a list of excuses. He may be a cheat (by his own words), but at least he’s a (semi) honest cheat.
In related news, Sherdog.com ”has also learned that welterweight Fernando Gonzalez tested positive for marijuana following his third-round submission of Curtis Millender at the same event…and has been given a 90-day suspension for his second failure due to marijuana.” Which…
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