Former UFC title challenger Taila Santos has been slapped with a six-month suspension.
After a relatively successful run inside the Octagon that saw her take Valentina Shevchenko to the limit, narrowly surrendering a split decision to the reigning flyweight queen, Santos made the move to PFL.
Last year, she fought her way through the promotion’s 125-pound tournament, beating Ilara Joanne, Jena Bishop, and Liz Carmouche before getting starched by eventual tourney winner Dakota Ditcheva in the finals.
Santos was expected to be part of this year’s PFL flyweight world tournament, but that is no longer the case, according to the United States Anti-Doping Agency.
“Santos tested positive for oxandrolone and its metabolites and tested positive for clenbuterol as the result of an out-of-competition sample collected on March 21, 2025,” USADA wrote on its website. “The period of ineligibility for the use of a prohibited substance is six months. Santos’ six-month period of ineligibility began on March 21, 2025, the date her positive sample was collected. As a result of her positive test, Santos was also removed from the card for the PFL World Tournament event on April 11, 2025.”
Oxandrolone and clenbuterol are listed in the class of anabolic agents.
The ex-UFC star will be eligible to compete again in 2025
Before coming up short against Shevchenko, Santos earned noteworthy wins over Molly McCann, Gillian Robertson, Roxanne Modafferi, and Joanne Wood. Overall, the Brazilian is 22-4 in her mixed martial arts career
Santos will be eligible to compete again on September 21, 2025.
