The Boxing World Sounds Off On The Canelo Alvarez Suspension

The Canelo Alvarez vs Gennady Golovkin rematch set for May 5 at the T-Mobile Arena is in danger of being canceled.


Earlier this month Canelo tested positive for Clenbuterol, a PED. The amount detected was consistent with contamination through meat products. However, this test failure has opened up a deluge of criticism for the boxing world, including the likes of Eddie Hearn and Floyd Mayweather. Whether or not the Clenbuterol was due to bad meat, many boxers feel Canelo has been illegally juicing for a substantial portion of his career.

In this video former champion and Showtime commentator Paulie Malinaggi says:

“If you need a failed drug test to realize some guys are cheating, you need to knit, not watch sports.”

Golovkin also weighed in, after doing several live interviews, told ESPN:


“Again with Mexican meat? Come on. I told you, it’s not Mexican meat. This is Canelo. This is his team. This is his promotion. Canelo is cheating. They’re using these drugs, and everybody is just trying to pretend it’s not happening. This guy, he knows. This is not his first day in boxing. He proves he gets benefits from everyone and he can get away with it. Check him on a lie detector and then we can find out everything.”

The Nevada State Athletic Commission temporarily suspended Alvarez last week. They will hold a meeting April 10 to determine Canelo’s future. Yesterday they released an extended statement listing their complaint against him:

“Alvarez’s utilization, ingestion and/or consumption of Clenbuterol, whether intentional or not, constitutes an anti-doping violation.”


This is extremely significant, considering that up to this point, evidence that the ingestion of PED’s was unwilling has been sufficient to warrant at least a reduced sentence. Here it appears the commission is contending that unwilling ingestion is irrelevant. If this principle is carried through to sentencing, it could have a massive impact on all combat sports.

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