The rematch between Canelo Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin already has controversy two months before the fight even starts.
Alvarez has tested positive for traces of the banned substance clenbuterol, per a Golden Boy Promotions press release. Below is the full statement from Golden Boy, which claims the positive test came from Alvarez eating contaminated meat.
As 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.
As Daniel Eichner, Director of SMRTL, the WADA-accredited lab that conducted the tests stated in his letter today, "These values are all within the range of what is expected from meat contamination."
Upon receiving this information, Golden Boy immediately notified the Nevada State Athletic Commission and Gennady Golovkin's promoter, Tom Loeffler.
As has been planned, Canelo will immediately move his training camp from Mexico to the United States and will submit to any number and variety of additional tests that VADA deems necessary ahead of and after May 5.
Added Canelo: "I am an athlete who respects the sport and this surprises me and bothers me because it had never happened to me. I will submit to all the tests that require me to clarify this embarrassing situation and I trust that at the end the truth will prevail."
Canelo has tested clean dozens of times over the course of his previous 12 fights.
The current Ring Middleweight champion is scheduled to fight Golovkin on May 5 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas with the winner walking away with the Ring, WBA, WBC, IBF and Lineal middleweight world titles.
There's no word on if the fight will be canceled or if any governing bodies will withdraw sanctioning for the fight. WBC President Mauricio Sulaiman wrote that the governing body will investigate the matter.
"[The WBC] will follow protocol with consistency and analyze this specific case of [Canelo Alvarez] with clenbuterol which is a public health problem in Mexico," Sulaiman wrote on Twitter.
Clenbuterol is listed on the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Prohibited List and according to the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) official website, the substance is classified under the category of other "Anabolic Agents.
This wouldn't be the first time a Mexican boxing superstar has tested positive for clenbuterol. Erik Morales and Francisco Vargas both tested positive for clenbuterol in the past, both blamed it on contaminated meat and were allowed to move forward with their respective fights.
Alvarez vs. Golovkin 2 is a rematch from their September 2017 fight in Las Vegas, in which the fight ended in a controversial split draw.
