Carina Damm will appeal suspension, says manager

The manager of Carina Damm says the fighter will appeal a six-month suspension and $550 fine from the Ohio State Athletic Commission.

Jason Ellis of Relentless Sports Management today told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that Damm denies submitting a false urine sample to the commission following a fight in Cleveland earlier this month.

Ellis added that Damm told him she not take performance-enhancing drugs prior to the competition.

“I don’t have all the facts,” Ellis said. “I spoke with Carina and her husband briefly, and my understanding is that she’s not doing anything she’s not supposed to be doing. I was told that she isn’t, so I’m going to support my client and see the facts through.”

Damm (18-9), who’s married to Bellator vet Luis Santos and is the sister of UFC featherweight Rodrigo Damm, is suspended for six months retroactive to the date of her fight, which took place June 1 at “NAAFS: Fight Night in the Flats 9.” She lost a decision in a catchweight bout against Bellator vet Jessica Eye (10-1), which at the time was her third consecutive setback.

Two weeks later, she fought in Brazil and earned a first-round TKO in another regional event.

After news of her suspension broke on website MMASucka.com, Eye wrote on Twitter, “She will lose her national card to compete here in United States now. [And] keep it very real she wasn’t stronger than me.”

If Damm appeals, the OSAC could uphold the punishment, or dismiss it and uphold the fine. In a worst-case scenario, the commission could extend the suspension to the full term of one year for first-time steroid offenders and increase the fine to several thousand dollars, OSAC Executive Director Bernie Profato told MMAjunkie.com.

The recent action is not Damm’s first offense in the U.S. She was suspended for one year and fined $2,500 when she tested positive for nandrolone following a win over Sofia Bagherdai at an event in Los Angeles. She fought three times in Brazil during that term.

Damm, who’s married to Bellator vet Luis Santos and is the sister of UFC featherweight Rodrigo Damm, was in Brazil and could not be reached for comment.

Ellis will develop a defense after he sees a letter from the commission that confirms the suspension, which was sent to a member of Damm’s family in South Florida, where she trains when not in her native Brazil.

Profato said Damm could appeal her suspension at an OSAC meeting in August. For now, her suspension is noted on a national fighter database that tracks administrative actions and medical suspensions.

Profato noted that Damm’s previous suspension wasn’t listed on her record in the fighter database. He said that had he seen it, he might have required Damm to take a provide a clean drug test prior to her fight earlier this month.

Following Damm’s fight with Eye, an OSAC inspector collected her post-fight sample and passed it off to a doctor, who noted that the fighter’s urine was unusually clear and cold, Profato said.

Although post-fight drug tests came back negative, the laboratory in charge of the screens tested Damm’s sample again and found that the fighter had not actually submitted urine.

Ellis said the fighter endured a hectic buildup to the bout when promoters flew her into Cleveland on the day of the bout’s weigh-ins. He said she had little time to cut weight and didn’t mean to come in heavier than Eye, who fights at flyweight.

In 2011, Brazilian fighter Thiago Silva was suspended by the Nevada State Athletic Commission for falsifying a urine sample following his fight with Brandon Vera at UFC 125. He later admitted to adulterating his sample to cover up for banned substances he used to treat a back injury.