By Mark Havey: The integrity of boxing is in disarray. Fans are questioning the quality of the system’s set up to catch drug cheats. The biggest questions for me is this, how prevalent is the use of PED’s in boxing? How many of our champions and hero’s are secretly and intentionally giving themselves a advantage. Of course everyone that tests positive has an excuse.
A common excuse is that the boxer had flu or a chest infection and was prescribed antibiotics. The antibiotics shockingly contained trace amounts of steroids. If any boxer says he was shocked by this he is a cheat. Here are the reasons why, antibiotics do contain steroids, but that is common knowledge. Checking the ingredients of medication is a simple as going onto Google, yet that isn’t needed. Every top gym has a doctor who is there to treat and advise. A boxer is required to talk with a doctor whenever taking medication. But the proof that this excuse is a fabrication is in the testing itself. Not only does the test indicate a positive or negative sample, it also calculates the amount of any banned substance. Medication doesn’t contain enough to give anyone an edge, it’s a very small amount. In Layman’s terms the test will reveal whether or not the person took it for a cold.
Everyone in boxing seems to be keen on stamping out the use of PED’s but not many are doing anything about it. They want everyone else to be clean but don’t want test’s to be done in their own camp. I think everyone should be tested during training and after a fight.
Erik Morales recently tested positive for clenbuterol, which is typically used for breathing disorders but also is used as a weight-loss aid. Cyclist Alberto Contador of Spain was banned from professional cycling for two years because he tested positive for clenbuterol during the 2010 Tour de France. Morales vs Garcia wasn’t cancelled and Morales wasn’t banned. Infact the WBC didnt endorse the result. So after cheating Morales was rewarded with a shot at world champion Danny Garcia and received one more huge pay day. The test results were swept under the canvas. Will the Morales case serve as a future deterrent?
Andre Berto tested positive for norandrosterone. Fundamentally a steroid which is banned due to it boosting testosterone. This is one of those cases where it pays for the boxer to do as he is required to and speak to the gym doctor. This drug can be found in alot of supplements which is why every boxer is told to double check with an expert. Since the ban Berto has been reinstated with his license as it has been claimed his test results may have been contaminated. They may or may not have been contaminated, either way Berto has been given a rewarding a lucrative shot at Robert Guerrero’s interim WBC belt. I’m sure this has put the terror of god into future cheats.
Lamont Peterson is the one that shocks me most. He tested positive for synthetic testosterone which is known to give increased strength, endurance and aggression. Peterson positive test was for his fight against Amir Khan. PED’s can’t make a bad fighter good. But they give an extra level of ability, an edge. It’s the kind of edge that will help you win a very close fight. Peterson vs Khan was a very close fight. What was Petersons reward? He was allowed to keep his IBF belt and is negotiating a fight against Zab Judah which will earn him a substantial purse.
I am entirely against steroids use. It goes about that one trait that makes boxers special, they always believe. Steroid use is basically saying “I am not good enough to win without cheating”. Of course it sounds good for people to say we are stamping out drugs. But it is looking like we are rewarding it. boxing is a incredible sport but is being tarnished by lenience.
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