Mexican superstar Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (49-1-2, 34 KOs) is confident that a victory in his upcoming fight will wipe away the controversy with his failed drug tests from earlier this year.
Canelo came under fire in recent months, when it was revealed that he tested positive for the banned substance clenbuterol in two random drug tests taken in February.
The failed test forced Canelo's withdrawal from a May 5 rematch against IBO, WBA, WBC middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin - and also saw him handed a six month retroactive suspension from the Nevada Athletic Commission.
Canelo has been firm that his tests were a direct result of ingesting contaminated meat back in Mexico.
And he says the NSAC is on his side in the matter.
“The commission knows what happened,” Canelo said to the Las Vegas Review Journal. “They are confident that it wasn’t intentional, and that’s why they gave me this short punishment. They know.
“I can stop in a corner [stand] and eat tacos [when in Mexico]. I can stop at any stand or any location and eat tacos. Just because I have money doesn’t mean I can’t stop at certain spots to eat. I’m a regular person, and I’m a person who grew up poor, and I can’t change just because I have money.”
“No one will be talking about this after September 15. I will win.”
Golden Boy Promotions President Eric Gomez, who promotes Canelo, told his boxer to brace himself for a negative reaction from the critics.
“I told him, ‘Look, let’s hope for the best,’” Gomez said. “Obviously, this was an accident. This was a mistake. Let us keep working with the commission. It was a learning process for all of us. For Canelo not being allowed to fight was very hard for us.
“It’s the way of life in Mexico [to eat at local foot stands]. The people who are saying that are the people who don’t live in Mexico. If you look at all the stories in the Mexican press, (Mexican athletes) have all supported Canelo because they live there, they know what it’s like.
“You can be walking down the street with your girlfriend or your wife and you see a taco stand in the corner, you buy tacos, that’s the way of life in Mexico. Everybody does it. I’ve done it.”
The rematch between Canelo and Golovkin will headline an HBO Pay-Per-View event on September 15th from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
2023-10-21 12:20:37
