Ketlen Vieira suspended for doping after Cris Cyborg fight
The former UFC fighter tested positive for a steroidal substance in her PFL debut and says she took medication for a knee injury.
Ketlen Vieira has been suspended for six months after testing positive for a steroidal substance banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency. The test came from her fight against Cris Cyborg on Aug. 22 at PFL Tampa in Florida, the Brazilian’s debut with the promotion after nearly a decade in the UFC. The suspension was first reported Tuesday by Sherdog and confirmed by Mike Mazzulli, director of the Mohegan Tribe Department of Athletic Regulation, which has run the PFL’s anti-doping program since 2025.
What the test found
According to Mazzulli, Vieira’s A and B samples, collected on fight night, returned the same result. The regulator did not name the substance. The six-month suspension is retroactive to the date of the fight.
The bout was already surrounded by problems. It was supposed to be Cyborg’s first defense of the PFL women’s featherweight title, but Vieira missed weight by more than seven pounds. The fight became a non-title bout at 153 pounds. At the time, Vieira told MMA Fighting that severe kidney and stomach pain before the weigh-ins kept her from making the limit. Cyborg won by unanimous decision.
Vieira’s side
In a statement published by MMA Fighting, Vieira said her team was always extremely careful with supplements and medical treatments and that she never had a single incident in 10 years in the UFC. She said that after leaving the promotion and its testing pool, she sought medical treatment for a long-standing knee injury that had never fully healed.
Vieira said she stopped the medication when she signed with the PFL, kept only the non-medication part of the treatment and believed enough time had passed for nothing to show up in testing. She added that she had no intention of breaking the rules and that the PFL gave her six months to make sure everything is in order before her next fight.
Cyborg calls for enforcement
Cyborg called for a firm response. In a statement quoted by Sherdog, the champion said, “I believe clean sport deserves strong enforcement.” According to MMA Fighting, she also publicly thanked Mazzulli for taking drug testing seriously.
From the UFC to the PFL in a few months
Vieira’s exit from the UFC was quick. In May, she beat Jacqueline Cavalcanti by decision in the final fight of her contract, and the promotion did not re-sign her. Less than a month later, she signed with the PFL and was booked straight into a fight with Cyborg.
The case adds to another weight-related story involving a Brazilian this week. VF Comunica covered how a fellow Brazilian lost his UFC spot in Ismael Bonfim cut by UFC after his third weight miss.
Is a six-month suspension a fair penalty in Ketlen Vieira’s case? Tell us in the comments.
