Calvillo Fails Drug Test For Weed
USADA announced on Wedneday that UFC women’s strawweight contender Cynthia Calvillo failed an in-competition drug test surrounding UFC 219 for marijuana metabolites, and she’s been suspended for six months for the infraction. The six-month suspension, which dates back to her unanimous decision loss against Carla Esparza at UFC 219 on December 30, 2017, can be reduced to a three-month suspension pending completion of a drug awareness program. It’s possible, however, that the Nevada State Athletic Commission may add additional penalities for the failed drug test. Calvillo, who is 6-1 in her MMA career, went 3-1 in the UFC in 2017 alone, and was in contention for the female fighter of the year award until losing to Esparza. Despite the loss, Calvillo is still only 30-year-old and when she returns to the Octagon, a few more quality wins will get her right back into title contention.
Karakhanyan Signs With ACB
Former Bellator featherweight Georgei Karakhanyan has signed a contract with Absolute Combat Beruit, according to Russian reporter Denis Geyko, who reports the Armenian-American will make his ACB debut on May 5 at an event at Olympic Stadium. ACB has confirmed the signing, saying Karakhanyan will fight Alexey Polpudnikov at ACB 86 in Moscow, Russia. Karakhanyan was actually born in Russia, so this is a homecoming of sorts for Karakhanyan. The former WSOF featherweight champion signed a deal with Bellator after losing his belt to Rick Glenn and since 2015 went 4-4 in Bellator, with two wins over Bubba Jenkins and another notable win over former UFC fighter Daniel Pineda. But he had too many losses, including a unanimous decision defeat to Henry Corrales at Bellator 192 in January of this year. Despite being 32 now, Karakhanyan is still a very solid fighter and should put on some exciting fights in ACB, who have put together a terrific roster in a short period of time.
Silva A Free Agent, Negotating New Deal
Former UFC welterweight Erick Silva is a free agent, according to a report by Guilherme Cruz of MMAFighting.com, who writes that Silva is talking to both the UFC and other promotions about his next move. Silva, who was once considered the future of the UFC welterweight division, has an all-time losing record in the Octagon at 7-8, and he lost his last two fights in the UFC against Jordan Mein and Yancy Medeiros. Though he has yet to fail a drug test, pundits have long connected USADA’s introduction to the UFC to Silva’s fall from grace. Though he’s just 33, Silva does not appear to have much left in the tank, and even if the UFC is intersted in re-signing him, it may make more sense for him to sign with someone like Bellator, where he could rebuild his stock against an overall weaker crop of welterweights.
