The ongoing saga of bad meat
Early last week when the news hit that Canelo Alvarez had failed a drug test for Clenbuterol the boxing world was in hysteria. Immediate talk of his upcoming rematch with Gennady Golovkin dominated the headlines. Was it cheating or just bad meat has been debated by boxing pundits and fans everywhere.
Since then fans have developed their opinions on whether Canelo cheated or if the rematch should go on. There was never really a doubt that the May 5th fight with Golovkin would move forward in my opinion due to the amount of money involved.
Of course the Nevada State Athletic Commission is who makes the final decision on the matter but the sanctioning bodies haven’t wasted any time coming to Canelo’s defense. The president of both the WBA & WBC have voiced their opinions on Canelo’s innocence.
Now the WBC’s doctor Antonio Hernandez has put forth his opinion on the matter. Hernandez has said it appears to be meat contamination but Canelo’s team should’ve known better at the very least.
“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,” explained Hernandez.
“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.]
“Take into account that in Mexico almost all of meat is contaminated, so athletes must consume select meat. If anyone is tested, he will come up with detectable levels of clenbuterol [after eating a contaminated meal], and this time it was Canelo’s turn and that is why there is so much noise.”
It’s hard for even the biggest Canelo supporter not to at the very least believe it was a lack of common sense that caused this situation.
By: Chris Henderson
