Breaking: King Mo Lawal Tests Positive For PEDs

The Athletic Commissions of Nevada and California have been busy lately. First the suspension of Cristiane "Cybrog" Santos in Cali following her beatdown of Hiroko Yamanaka back on December 17th and now word comes that "King Mo" Muhammed Lawal has tested positive following his win against Lorenz Larkin at Strikeforce: Rockhold vs. Jardine. Santos' win was subsequently changed to a No Contest, and it's likely that is what will happen here as well.

According to Tony Messano (Twitter username ULTMMA), the steroid King Mo Lawal was busted for Drostanolone is commonly used for cutting cycles of PED use.

In the short-term, these two busts are incredibly damaging to the already-thin roster of Strikeforce. With Santos' suspension, speculation has arisen that they might cut the 145-lb division altogether. Lawal is one of only half-a-dozen or so fighters that really has any credibility at Light-Heavyweight. The only fighters that most people see as having any legit shot at the vacant title are Gegard Mousasi and Rafael "Feijao" Cavalcante.

Long-term, this probably isn't much more than a severe bump in the road, as tons of fighters have had PED problems and aren't being held as pariahs. Sean Sherk, Chris Leben and Chael Sonnen among others have all had fights in the UFC after suspensions for illegal PEDs. Both Santos and Lawal will most likely return to the cage a little lighter in the wallet and hopefully humbler, but unless it's of their own volition, they will return and most likely find success.