‘Cyborg’ suspension thins Strikeforce women’s class

The same week one of the biggest potential matchups in women's mixed martial arts was announced, the world's best female fighter created a black eye for the sport.

Phenom Ronda Rousey, an Olympic medalist who has won all four of her pro fights by armbar in less than a minute, will challenge champion Miesha Tate for the Strikeforce 135-pound women's title March 3 in Columbus, Ohio.

Rousey will drop from the 145-pound class, a division now in danger of going away after its champion, Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos, tested positive for steroids after her fight in San Diego on Dec. 17.

Santos has been suspended a year and fined $2,500 by the California State Athletic Commission. She issued a statement blaming a dietary supplement to help her cut weight that she believed was approved.

"I will do everything I can to show my fans that I can still compete at the professional level without the use of any prohibited substances, and ask God's forgiveness for my mistake," she said in the statement.

UFC president Dana White indicated the suspension of Santos could signal the end of the division, but Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker says that might be premature.

"I don't think it's time to throw it out to the garbage," Coker said. "I still think we have some great fighters at 145 and a lot of girls that maybe haven't been around for a while, I believe they're going to be motivated to come back because Cyborg won't be there."

That could mean a return by Gina Carano, who hasn't fought in more than two years since being dominated by Santos in her first career loss. Carano, however, is starring in the film "Haywire," to be released Jan. 20. The movie is expected to be a hit, which could open more doors in Hollywood for Carano.

■ BIGGER IS BETTER -- After years of struggling to make 170 pounds as a welterweight, Anthony Johnson is set to make his middleweight debut Saturday when he faces Vitor Belfort at UFC 142 in Rio de Janeiro.

The move appears to be permanent.

"Fighting at this weight is a lot of fun for me," Johnson said on a conference call last week. "This is easy. I'm 215 pounds right now. I am looking forward to fighting as a middleweight and being a better athlete, a thousand times healthier than I was at 170 pounds.

"You are going to see a new, more dangerous 'Rumble' at 185 pounds."

The main event on the card is a featherweight title fight between Chad Mendes and champion Jose Aldo.

■ UFC 141 TESTS CLEAN -- All fighters drug-tested by the Nevada Athletic Commission following UFC 141 on Dec. 30 came back clean.

That includes Alistair Overeem, who was the subject of much speculation leading up to his win over Brock Lesnar. Overeem did not respond in a timely manner to a prefight request to report for a test and will be required to submit to two more random tests over the next six months.

■ COMEDY CORNER -- UFC lightweight Jacob Volkmann is in hot water once again for comments he made about President Barack Obama after his victory at UFC 141.

Volkmann was placed on administrative leave from his wrestling coaching job at White Bear Lake High School in Minnesota for a "joke" that completely bombed, plus his follow-up comments to several websites about wanting to put the president in an armbar and inflict pain.

He was disciplined by the district and was even visited by the Secret Service for similar comments a year ago.

Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal was more effective in his humor following his victory Saturday on the Strikeforce card at the Hard Rock Hotel. He stayed out of politics and focused his wrath on former UFC champion Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, with whom he has been feuding.

"Don't bring up that bum's name," Lawal said. "He should stick to acting and just doing movies. We all know the truth; he's an actor, a subpar actor. He should be on the B-Team, not the 'A-Team.' "

Contact reporter Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5509. Follow him on Twitter: @adamhilllvrj.