This piece was originally written and published on March 8, 2015. Since then, Cris Cyborg has continued to fight for respectability, despite her past history of performance-enhancing drug use. Now, entering UFC 232, it looks as though if Amanda Nunes cannot beat Cyborg, no one can. Read it here. Or Read HERE why The Tribe Sports maintains that every win for Cyborg remains a win for cheating.

By Michael James

The Tribe Sports

More than a few times in sports, the men who run it and many of those who cover it have allowed their zest and zeal to witness or profit from spectacle to supersede their most basic sense of right and wrong.

They should be ashamed of themselves.

These are the type of men who, immediately after seeing UFC bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey dispatch Cat Zingano in a blink-and-you-missed-it 14 seconds Feb. 28 in Los Angeles, began calling for Rousey to face off against Invicta FC’s Cristiane “Cyborg” Justino.

Ignored in their bloodlust for a showdown between the top two female competitors in the mixed martial arts game is the elephant in the room – that Cris Cyborg is a proven steroid cheat who has never fully admitted the extent of her performance enhancing drug use.

There’s also the fact that Justino has obviously been juicing for so long that she now only barely qualifies as a woman in the ring anymore.

We’re not talking about Justino’s B.S. claim of one-time PED use. We’re talking about the obvious markers visible and audible to any and all who see Justino’s male musculature or hears her deep voice – undeniable proof of prolonged use of a variety of steroids despite several years of “clean” test results.

Spelling it out as clear as only Ronda Rousey herself seems to be willing to do these days, because of her drug use, Cris Justino looks and even sounds like a man. And, thanks to her drug use, she is able to utilize in the ring male strength, power and aggression to beat up on women.

How is this part of the dialogue being avoided by all those real men who want to see Ronda Rousey, who has never been caught using illegal drugs, fight Cris Justino?

Simply put, it seems that these men so badly want to see a Rousey-Justino showdown that they just don’t care if the playing field is level.

Worse, many of these same men who castigate the likes of Barry Bonds and Alex Rodriguez for alleged and proven steroid use in baseball, willfully ignore use by a woman like Cris Justino, who essentially is equipped to kill another human being in the ring.

Wow.

For those who have followed the 29-year-old Brazilian’s career, after a fight back in December 2011, Justino tested positive for the anabolic steroid Stanozolol. The drug is commonly sold under the name Winstrol, and is often used by athletes to cut weight while retaining muscle mass.

Additional benefits of using this drug, which is banned by the International Association of Athletics Federation and many other sports governing bodies, include improved muscle growth and bone density and increased red blood cell production. It has also been used by trainers to get advantages for their athletes in the sport of horse racing.

You read that right. This stuff is used on Horses.

Stanozolol is so potent that it was among the first synthetic steroids to be banned by the International Olympic Committee in 1974 after methods were developed that could detect their illicit use.

Following her positive test, of course, Cris Justino claimed to have only been seeking the most innocuous benefit, which was simply to be able to cut weight.

Surely, she had no interest in the other side effects – an increase in strength and, quite possibly, stamina – two tools in the arsenal of mixed martial artists who wish to wreak havoc on opponents in the ring. Certainly, her only intention was to make weight so she could fulfill her contractual obligation.

It was only a single, solitary mistake, Cris Justino lied, before suffering the indignity of having her victory over Hiroko Yamanaka changed to a no-decision and being slapped with a one-year ban plus a $2,500 fine.

For a bit of perspective on those whose athletic exploits have been revealed as aided by the use of Stanozolol, here’s just a few well-known examples:

Canada’s Ben Johnson was stripped of his 100 meter gold medal win in the 1988 Olympics after testing positive. The bust of the bulked-up Johnson marked the first time most sports fans really became aware of PEDs.

Former major leaguer Rafael Palmiero was banned 10 days in 2005 by MLB for testing positive for what the New York Times reported as Stanozolol use. Palmiero denied it and will likely go to his grave lying about it.

In the 2006 book Game of Shadows, Barry Bonds was alleged to have used the drug. He denied “knowingly” using it.

Former pro baseball strength coach Brian McNamee testified under oath in court that he injected Roger Clemens in the ass with the drug. Clemens not only disputed McNamee’s claims – which included saved bloody cotton balls and DNA-tinged syringes – but also that of his former New York Yankees teammate and friend, Andy Pettitte, who admitted his own drug use and verified having spoken to Clemens about Clemens’ PED use. Clemens claimed Pettitte “mis-remembered” their conversation.

Please note that this may very well be the first recorded use of the word “mis-remembered” in American history, as clearly Clemens did not want to brand his friend a liar in open court, even while perjuring himself. The same can be said for Bonds, who seemed to know everything else going on in his life, but did not “knowingly” take performance enhancing drugs that even changed his hat size.

Since Cris Justino’s positive test, she hasn’t been caught again, but evidence of long-time steroid use, and abuse, is written all over her. Check out her ridiculous male musculature, the GI-Joe chin and the baritone voice as deep as your average 18-year-old boy. In fact, her voice is so brassy she almost sounded like a man who’d undergone sexual reassignment surgery while calling Ronda Rousey “scared of me” in a recent interview.

Don’t take my word for it. Check Justino out for yourself here.

I don’t know about you, but when the only thing about a woman that remains feminine is her hairstyle, that’s a problem.

Cris Justino is right: Ronda Rousey should be scared of Cris Justino. Hell, so should you. So should every other woman who competes in any weight class within reach of this woman, who has sacrificed truth, honesty and integrity in her quest to be, well, ahem, Queen, of MMA.

The biggest shame of all in this is the male-dominated media, whose ignoring of Justino’s drug use helps perpetuate the false narrative that Ronda Rousey is simply “too scared” to fight Justino. As if it’s as simple as that. In very few places is it being rightfully suggested that Rousey is correct in denying this very talented steroid invention a reward for cheating.

Where is the journalistic responsibility to investigate this most glaring aspect of Cris Justino’s history as she tries to cheat her way into wearing Rousey’s crown? Where are the men willing to get their hands dirty in search of the truth?

Justino’s drug use is not simply part of the story from a journalistic standpoint, it is the story.

But you didn’t hear a peep about it after Rousey destroyed the previously unbeaten Zingano on that Saturday night at Staples Center. The ESPN talking heads who have begun greasing the skids for a Rousey-Justino battle had absolutely nothing to say about the steroid issue.

Jeff Wagenheim, the Sports Illustrated writer who breathlessly wrote an entire piece about how there is only one fight left to see? He typed nearly seven full paragraphs from his first mention of the potential showdown before casually mentioning Justino’s positive drug test. And this, he did in passing in parenthesis, as though a footnote.

Wagenheim, like many of those other men who cover women’s MMA, listed a litany of reasons why this fight hasn’t happened and all the reasons why it should, but never once touched on why it should not.

He wrote how there is only one fight for Rousey and how the UFC knows this.

He wrote of Cris Justino needing the time to make the cut from 145 to Rousey’s 135-pound realm.

He wrote how it all makes sense from a business standpoint, rather snidely suggesting that Rousey would have time to film her scheduled movie (as if she shouldn’t enjoy the benefits of her new-found fame and fortune outside the ring), while possibly taking on less risky defenses of her title.

He wrote that while Rousey is off doing things other than fighting, Justino’s manager George Prajin can have time to work “hand-in-hand” with the UFC to get a deal in place.

Nowhere did Wagenheim broach Cris Justino’s obvious steroid abuse. And if Wagenheim would claim to have no evidence, surely he can also find no evidence of an athlete experiencing such prolonged and permanent physiological change based on one-time drug use. This only requires extrapolation.

Nowhere did Wagenheim echo Ronda Rousey’s oft-stated position that Justino is a cheater who does not deserve the opportunity to fight for a championship that she would not deserve even if she defeated Rousey.

Good money says Jeff Wagenheim and every single one of these men would cry foul on the Brazilian before allowing their wives, girlfriends, daughters, sisters or cousins into a ring with this hybrid humanoid.

Want a few more examples of male pattern idiocy and convenient male blindness when it comes to the truth surrounding this potential superfight?

Check out Ronda Rousey’s March 5 appearance on the Doug Gottlieb Show on CBS Radio and listen as she has to, on multiple occasions, explain to the host why his thoughts that her defeating a man in the ring would do nothing for gender equality or the women’s liberation movement.

It’s stunning, really, that it takes this insightful and extremely intelligent woman to show men how to put her talents as a fighter and her role in society as a woman into proper perspective. Here’s how the nearly two-minute conversation went:

Doug Gottlieb asks Ronda Rousey about fighting a guy from 11:13 mark to 13:00

DG: How close is it to becoming a reality?

RR: It’s not a reality. They’re not going to do anything like that. I mean, fights are chaotic. Anything can happen and there’s no setting in which we should condone a man hitting a women.

DG: But, you talked about how Sports Illustrated, by putting you and (tennis player) Caroline Wozniacki in the swimsuit edition can change the view of what a beautiful woman is, couldn’t you beating a man, or even just defending yourself in a great fight in an octagon against somebody of like size, of like weight, couldn’t that have the same effect on how we view woman as somehow inferior creatures?

RR: (Pause) Are you saying that like me fighting a man will change the perception of women being an inferior creature? Is that what you’re saying?

DG: (matter-of-factly) Yeah.

RR: I really don’t think that’s necessary…

DG: (interrupting) I, I mean, but, but, , like, I’m not saying that necessary is necessary…have you thought of it from that perspective of.. it’s not on you to take the whole women’s lib movement, and having women have equal pay and equal rights, it’s not necessarily on you, but it is something that.. it’s a powerful moment if you are in the ring with a guy of your size , of like talent and you beat him, I just think socially it would be a very big win for women…

RR: I really just don’t think that any athletic commission on earth would ever condone something like that. Fights are going to go both ways. You’re going to see both people hitting each other and I just don’t think we should ever celebrate a man hitting a woman in any kind of setting.

DG: Fair enough.

Suffice it to say, any political aspirations Gottlieb may have? When women hear this clip? Poof…

But as stated from the outset, we should hardly be surprised that the male powers-that-be have often brushed aside doing what is right in favor of mega-showdowns, ratings, money or spectacle.

We’ve seen it in football, where in search of victory, team owners, coaches and even teammates have looked the other way and allowed concussed players back onto the field facing the prospect of further catastrophic brain injury.

In boxing, commissions headed and populated by men who should know better, have sanctioned fights that endangered the future health of once-great fighters who today move slowly and speak with an unmistakable lisp.

How about the Olympics, where overzealous coaches intimidate and mentally abuse preteen girls and boys to grin and bear it through hairline fractures and severely sprained ankles, all in the name of country, team and greatness.

Often, even bystanders close enough to sound the alarm did nothing except watch human beings being put into precarious situations for the entertainment and amusement of other human beings.

Now, however, the Ronda Rousey-Cris Justino situation is handing the men who run sports and sports news empires an opportunity to do the right thing.

ESPN head John Skipper, who pretty much owns and employs nearly every top investigative sports journalist in the country, has a chance to go after the real story here. He can help expose for the world Justino’s drug use, which, again, is apparent to anyone who knows anything about juicing.

Jump in here any time, Alex Rodriguez. If ESPN can pile on you even before your admission, they can go after Justino, too.

Skipper also has the opportunity to prohibit his analysts from pushing for such a fight without the drug issue being part and parcel of every segment concerning the story.

Having been a head writer on one of the network’s shows – Quite Frankly with Stephen A. Smith – and experienced firsthand how the network operates, this is one of the truly disturbing aspects of having a monolith like ESPN controlling the message – and determining the truth – for the American sports public.

What I discovered while tossing out story topics during meetings on Quite Frankly was if ESPN has a partnership with a sports league or hires certain individuals with controversial histories, suddenly the public is no longer given the luxury of truth in sports reporting.

Here’s an example: Well before his hot-headedness contributed to the death of Kevin Ward, Jr., I thought QF should address NASCAR driver Tony Stewart being a reckless and dangerous jerk. My idea was quickly shut down by an ESPN vice president. Why? Because the network had a deal with NASCAR. A relationship.

The same held true for a story on the abusive former Indiana basketball coach Bobby Knight. One week he was fair game, the next he was not because the network hired him as analyst.

Today, a great example of how ESPN uniformly ignores the truth and changes the narrative through partnership conflicts of interest, is the story of former Baltimore Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis. If you recall, Lewis will forever be tainted, and justifiably so, for his role in the deaths of two men following a Super Bowl XXXIV party in 2000.

In that case, Ray Lewis was charged along with a pair of friends, with murder of two men. He later pleaded guilty to obstruction, but never admitted his full level of involvement. He’s now employed as an ESPN analyst. You can trust that network won’t soon be doing a 30-for-30 on The NFL Hall of Fame ESPN Analyst Who Helped Cover Up The Deaths Of Two Men.

Cris Justino’s drug use does not quite reach the egregious level of Lewis’ case, but ESPN, Fox and other networks cannot ignore the PED elephant in the room.

At least UFC president Dana White, who seems to value big-money fights above all else, has shown a shred of conscience by trying to slow this train with his public accusations of Justino’s suspected drug use.

Keep it up, Dana White. The UFC, Rousey and you owe Cyborg nothing. No matter how many times Justino challenges you to test her, the damage has clearly already been done. She does not have the right to re-engineer herself to possess the strength of men in order to dominate women. She can’t have it both ways.

Hell, where’s Joe Rogan? The former Mr. Fear Factor knows a thing or two about steroids and those who use them. He seems to be a straight shooter with great admiration for Ronda Rousey both as a competitor and as a person. I find it telling that Rogan routinely touts Rousey as the greatest female star in MMA without reservation and never calls for her to fight the chemically-addled Cyborg.

Stand up and be heard, Joe. Don’t leave Ronda Rousey out there to defend her integrity and courage alone. She needs voices of support like yours, and not fighter/analyst Chael Sonnen, who recently added this misguided, and some would say, sexist, view to the fray.

“I know (Cyborg) personally and she’s a very nice gal,” Sonnen said. “If you judge a book by the cover, you will be wrong about her. That said, the only person holding up that fight is her. Ronda Rousey is at 135 pounds in the UFC. She’ll fight any 135 pound woman out there. Cyborg is not in the UFC and she is not 135 pounds.”

Sonnen continued, “Cris seems to be the one that wants the fight, but she’s also the one holding it up. I appreciate her callouts and the intensity behind them, but the reality is still that she’s dragging her feet here. She has to get to 135 to get into the UFC. That’s all she has to do.”

No, Chael, it’s great that you know Cyborg personally, but despite the fact that you find her a “nice gal,” there is more she has to do – like admit she’s long abused steroids and stop taking them.

As for Ronda Rousey herself? One would hope that she does not allow herself to be goaded or coerced into a fight with Cris Justino – even though she has continually said she will fight Justino any time she comes down to 135.

To be most fair to Rousey, this fight should be undertaken only on her own terms and at her discretion. If she decides she wants to prove to the masses she can beat a woman who has cheated her entire career, that is totally up to her. Any other outside pressure she should ignore, just as the men covering the sport are ignoring Cyborg’s past in their quest for the ultimate spectacle in women’s MMA.

Sure, there are those who will say Justino’s appearance is not proof of drug use. They will argue that there is no smoking needle, as with Roger Clemens and Brian McNamee. And they will be right, for until someone comes forward with irrefutable evidence, there will merely be a dark cloud of suspicion hovering over the entire career of Cris Justino.

I argue, however, that sometimes you simply don’t need the evidence. You only need your eyes and your ears. A case in point is a former high school classmate I attended Henry Ford High School with back in Detroit. She was an athlete, on the cheer team, built pretty much like every other girl she competed with and against.

In high school, I was 5-10, 170 pounds. Several years later, weighing about 190, I ran into this female classmate who excitedly told me she had become a bodybuilder. Right there on the street in front of a movie theater, she flexed and showed off her bulging biceps. Then working in the sports department at the Detroit News, I first thought of doing a story about her. My second thought? This girl is on steroids.

That girl, Lenda Murray, went on to win eight Miss Olympia titles and is thought of as the greatest female bodybuilder in history. Across the decades, I have never seen nor heard of her admit to using steroids, which, at the time in her profession, actually leveled the playing field.

She remains the only female I know in the history of my life to have grown bigger than me.

And this is how the whole ignored elephant in the room thing works. For years, I have read articles where Lenda talks about her diet and how she started bodybuilding to trim her “sprinter’s thighs” and I note how she’s never asked nor comments directly on the steroid issue.

At some point, the responsibility to come clean – to find and reveal the truth – lies not with the athlete, but with the organizations that sanction and cover them.

I do not use Lenda Murray’s example to call her out, however, for drugs are just part of the bodybuilding game. It’s known and accepted. Lenda Murray, at worst, could have only hurt herself by whatever concoctions she used to propel herself to the top of the female body building pantheon.

Cris Justino, who used drugs to transform herself into something nature never intended, can kill or maim someone.

Sorry, fellas, but you don’t get to shill for a fight between Ronda Rousey and Cris Justino – ignore the injustice – and call it fair. Because Cris Justino has never played fair. Because Cyborg can never, no matter how long she claims to have been clean, actually become clean.

At this moment, Ronda Rousey stands alone in calling Cris Justino out for this. It’s enough to make you shake your head and wonder why real men are forcing a woman to do a man’s job.

In fact, it’s a crying shame.

[author] [author_image timthumb=’on’]http://www.thetribesports.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/mjtribe.jpg[/author_image] [author_info]Michael James has spent more than 20 years in sports journalism as a general assignment reporter with the Detroit News, an NBA beat writer for the New York Daily News and as head writer for ESPN’s Quite Frankly With Stephen A. Smith.[/author_info] [/author]

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