Ali had injections of cortisone and xylazine. So what?

[physiker]

Ferdie Pacheco, M.D. has stated that, starting with his comeback, Ali needed injections of cortisone and xylazine (xylacene in the book is a typo I believe) between his knuckles to cut down the pain of punching.

He even stated that Ali was afraid of injections, and he first had to spray a numbing compound.

http://tinyurl.com/5r74mqv

My comment would be, so what? If this were disallowed--note Pacheco says he didn't believe this was against any regs--we would have been deprived of Ali/Foreman and Ali/Frazier III, some of the greatest fights ever.

Does anyone here know if this is allowed now? And if not, when boxing began to disallow such injections?

I don't think it makes a boxer any better per se, except in cutting down the pain of impact.

[Note this has nothing to do with evidence-free claims of systemic use of steroids that are now in a court case.]

[Jabroni]

Ali fought the best of his generation.

[boxingboy86]

Ali fought the best of his generation.

snap...

[Larry the boss]

[BattlingNelson]

I knew very well that Ali got those injections in the latter part of his career. I'm still quite sure that certain numbing agents is allowed today.

[physiker]

I knew very well that Ali got those injections in the latter part of his career. I'm still quite sure that certain numbing agents is allowed today.

Thanks Batt.
Are you saying that today, the anesthetic is allowed but not the cortisone?

[BattlingNelson]

Thanks Batt.
Are you saying that today, the anesthetic is allowed but not the cortisone?

I'm not totally in the know as to which products are allowed when and where, but I know that Mikkel Kessler had his broken hand sedated before entering the ring against Calzaghe.

[madsweeney]

And he used sniffing salts...different era, different rules.

[physiker]

I'm not totally in the know as to which products are allowed when and where, but I know that Mikkel Kessler had his broken hand sedated before entering the ring against Calzaghe.

Thanks. I recall talk of Kessler's injury before the bout. I tried to find what he had injected now, but couldn't.

Of course, Calzaghe had a long history of hand injuries. People forget or don't know, that the "slappy one" used to knock out most of his opponents early on. Maybe how he started breaking his hand and changed his punches somewhat?

Maybe that fight had both sides getting hand injections?

I'd like to know just what they got. Maybe there has to be special permission, as such things would show in urine?

Does anyone know when they began to test boxers' urine after fights?