Report: Silva tested positive for synthetic testosterone, diuretic

It could be some time before we see Anderson Silva in the cage again - if at all.

The former UFC middleweight champion tested positive for synthetic testosterone (methyltestosterone) and an undisclosed diuretic in a flagged sample that got him yanked from a November date with Kelvin Gastelum, sources told MMA Fighting's Marc Raimondi on Friday following a report from Brazil's Combate.

As per the USADA's protocol, the illicit substances were not revealed at the time of Silva's flagging.

Silva, 42, is facing a ban of up to four years and maybe more since he tested positive for multiple banned substances. The Brazilian was flagged for several illicit substances in relation to his 2015 fight with Nick Diaz at UFC 183, and while the promotion hadn't yet enlisted the anti-doping agency as its drug testing partner, the USADA could factor the transgression into its sanctions, given that it took place within the decade required to weigh multiple violations.

According to Combate, Silva's team claims he'll call it a career should he be slapped with a penance of at least two years. They're also angling for a reduced ban under the argument that Silva's first failed test occurred pre-USADA. The former champ has denied any wrongdoing and maintained he's been working with the USADA on the matter, with one of his coaches at X-Gym recently attributing the failed test to a tainted supplement.

Silva had blamed his first flagging on a tainted sexual enhancement pill, but was ultimately slapped with a one-year ban and a $380,000 fine by the Nevada State Athletic Commission - UFC 183's sanctioning body - and saw his unanimous decision win over Diaz changed to a no-contest.

He last took the Octagon in February at UFC 208, where he edged Derek Brunson in a controversial decision.