“Listen, Anderson is a great fighter and he has achieved many many things. But the fact to the matter is, he tested positive for performance enhancing drugs on his last fight. Apparently, that was the first time he’s been tested. That’s what he said. His words, not mine. A cynic would let me to believe that he was using his whole career. Shame on him. How he calls himself a martial artist, and takes performance enhancing drugs is beyond me… At 39-years-old, having the career he has had, being Anderson Silva – the mighty Anderson Silva that’s destroyed everybody, and has this finishing ability. Don’t tell me, at 39-years-old, someone is going to say ‘here, try steroids’. At that age, having the career, the legacy that he has, that he is going to decide to put that all at risk? No! He would have the confidence, that state of mind to know ‘I don’t need that. I am Anderson Silva. I have achieved all these things. I don’t need to cheat.’ But he didn’t do that. And that’s because he was doing it his whole career. If you look at him on PRIDE, he was 168 lbs. Now he walks around 40 lbs heavier. Do the math!”
-During this week’s media day in Los Angeles, Michael Bisping makes the case that his UFC Fight Night 84 opponent Anderson Silva has been on PEDs his entire career (via BloodyElbow.com).
Penick’s Analysis: There’s some false equivalency being made here by Bisping, because a fighter’s former walking around weight doesn’t necessarily mean anything one way or the other regarding PEDs. There are plenty of other reasons for weight to be put on, especially through a lengthy career, but it’s far from unreasonable for Bisping to be taking shots at this point. As a fighter who’s been nothing but clean in his career – so far as can be proven – he’s seeing Silva as completely deceitful regarding the PED failure last year. That Silva’s explanation was troublesome at best during his hearing certainly didn’t help things, and Bisping’s going to keep making comments like this regarding any fighter he’s facing with PED issues.
[Michael Bisping art by Grant Gould (c) MMATorch.com]
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