It was to the surprise of many when the most anticipated rematch of the year was not called off after Canelo Alvarez’s failed drugs test. Golden Boy Promotions took control of the situation quickly and put out a press release blaming contaminated Mexican meat.
“As a part of the voluntary testing program that Canelo Alvarez insisted on ahead of his May 5 fight, one of his results came back positive for trace levels of Clenbuterol, consistent with meat contamination that has impacted dozens of athletes in Mexico over the last years.”
The news did not sit well with the boxing community as Alvarez was not suspended nor questioned in any way and the fight against Gennady Golovkin is still set to take place on May 5 in Las Vegas.
Matt Christie, Editor of the Boxing News, gave a brutal take on the situation and wrote:
“Weaponry enhanced, reputation ruined, and his place in on of the richest fights in history secure. Because at the time of writing, Canelo Alvarez, training for his May 5 rematch with Gennady Golovkin, is being forgiven by authorities after clenbuterol, which builds clean muscle while burning fat, was discovered in his system.
“So, after the WBA and WBC drew predictable conclusions that Canelo is innocent, boxing put its hand in the air and raised its grubby middle finger to the world. If you got the cash to splash in this game, any excuse will do.”
Gracias Los Angeles, nos vemos en Las Vegas// Thank you Los Angeles, see you in Vegas #teamcanelo#caneloggg2#5demayo pic.twitter.com/b8Vv9C8m82
— Canelo Alvarez (@Canelo) March 13, 2018
One of WBC’s doctors, Antonio Fernandez Hernandez, firmly vows for Canelo’s innocence and claims it is all just ‘a mistake’ made by the boxer’s team.
“Canelo has everything at hand… doctors, nutritionists, a physical trainer, so this is an oversight. The amount [of clenbuteral] they found is very little, it was an accident, a mistake by his team.. because he probably ingested contaminated meat,” said Hernandez according to Boxing Scene.
Contaminated meat is a widely recognised issue in Mexico and Hernandez points out that Canelo’s case is not the first of its kind.
“I have to clarify something, clenbuterol is a hormone that helps eliminate fat and increase muscle. However, the amount that was found in Canelo was minimal, which means that it’s a feeding problem and his team is responsible. We have to remember that this is not the first time [that this has happened to an athlete in Mexico.]”
Since the positive test, Alvarez has moved his camp to the United States and has undergone USADA testing with negative results for banned substances.
The rematch against Golovkin is still officially set for May 5th.
READ MORE:
Canelo tests positive for Clenbuterol
Golovkin brandishes Canelo ‘shameful’
GGG promoter Tom Loeffler addresses concern over Canelo’s alleged PED usage