Injury-Linked Suspension Ruling
STJD Suspends Inter Defender Gabriel Until Pec Recovers, Citing Injury Severity
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Key Points
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The STJD’s ruling invoked Brazil’s Brazilian Code of Sports Justice (CBJD), Article 254,3, allowing Victor Gabriel to remain suspended until Gabriel Pec returns to training, with a maximum cap of 180 days, a non-standard penalty reflecting the severity of the injury and its impact on Pec’s recovery (and the decision is appealable).
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Pec’s injury required surgery, and the incident occurred as Pec was making his Cruzeiro debut after transferring from MLS side LA Galaxy, with Cruzeiro eventually winning the match in which the injury happened.
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During proceedings, the court questioned the authenticity of audio from the match’s VAR that Internacional had submitted as part of its defense, signaling scrutiny of evidence used in the case.
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Internacional later acknowledged that the audio used in its defense had been sourced from social media rather than an official VAR recording, highlighting an evidentiary error in the case filing.
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Gabriel publicly apologized, emphasized there was no malice, and explained the tackle occurred under slippery, wet field conditions with the defender noting, 'I had the feeling that I would get to the ball first, and I did.'
Brazil's sports court has handed Internacional defender Víctor Gabriel one of the most unusual bans in recent memory. The STJD — Brazil's Superior Court of Sports Justice — suspended him until Cruzeiro forward Gabriel Pec returns to training, with a maximum cap of 180 days, according to UPI. The trigger: a reckless challenge that snapped Pec's left tibia during a league match.
Pec had just made his Cruzeiro debut in that very match, having recently transferred from MLS side LA Galaxy. Cruzeiro won the game, but Pec left it on a stretcher. He needed surgery on his broken tibia. His recovery timeline now directly controls when Gabriel can play again, Yahoo Sports reported.
A Ban Tied to Pec's Recovery, Not a Match Count
The STJD used Article 254.3 of Brazil's Code of Sports Justice to justify the ruling. That law lets the court suspend a player until the person they injured can train again. The ban is not measured in games or weeks — it runs until Pec steps back onto a training pitch, UPI reported. If that takes longer than 180 days, Gabriel is still free to return at that point.
The decision can be appealed. But as it stands, Gabriel's playing future is directly tied to Pec's healing. That kind of ruling is rare in Brazilian football. It signals the court's willingness to go beyond standard punishments when an injury is severe, according to Yahoo Sports.
Gabriel Apologizes, Blames Wet Field Conditions
Víctor Gabriel went public with an apology after the ruling. He said there was no malice in the tackle. He pointed to a slippery, wet field. 'I had the feeling that I would get to the ball first, and I did,' he said. He added that he prays for Pec's recovery, UPI reported.
Whether the court found his explanation convincing or not, it still handed down a heavy sanction. The reckless nature of the challenge — regardless of intent — left a fellow professional with a broken leg on his debut. The court made clear that the outcome mattered, according to Yahoo Sports.
Fake VAR Audio Undermines Internacional's Defense
The case took an awkward turn when the court questioned audio evidence that Internacional submitted. The club had used a VAR audio clip as part of its defense. But the recording had been pulled from social media — not from official VAR systems, UPI reported. The court flagged it as potentially not authentic.
Internacional later acknowledged the error. The club said the audio was not an official VAR recording and asked for it to be removed from the case. The blunder drew extra attention to the club's defense strategy and did little to help Gabriel's standing before the court, according to Yahoo Sports.
Pec's Debut Turned Painful as Cruzeiro Won
Gabriel Pec had only just arrived in Brazil. He joined Cruzeiro on a transfer from LA Galaxy in Major League Soccer. The match against Internacional was meant to be a fresh start. Instead, it ended with surgery, Yahoo Sports reported. Cruzeiro did win the match, but Pec watched the final minutes from a hospital.
His return to training is now the key date in two players' calendars — his own and Víctor Gabriel's. Every week Pec spends recovering is another week Gabriel spends on the sidelines. The STJD's ruling has linked their futures in a way Brazilian football has rarely seen before, according to UPI.
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