Comments Thread For: A Ticking Timebomb Lurks in Boxing

[CornerCutman]

You know, take a fight like Wilder-Fury 2 or 3 and put any boxer those sizes, at that level, in that kind of fight, in front of that many watching eyes. Then imagine one of them begins the dying process in front of everyone and his progress becomes a national story. Media gets a hold of it, then he dies and it turns out the other guy was on steroids. And people see the sport of boxing has absolutely no regulatory body protecting boxers. There'd be a circus if the culture war in the U.S. got a hold of it. The sport would be polarizing with people calling to ban it while others will probably call for even less regulation - both being disasters for the sport. What's more, what parent brings their kid to a boxing gym after that? What guidance counselor at what school has a troubled youth and thinks 'hmm, I have an idea?" Which police departments are pressured to drop their PAL boxing program?

Boxing can be a life-altering, life-saving, positive influence in a child's life. Anyone who has ever boxed in a competition gym, amateur or pro, has witnessed firsthand how a gym can be beneficial or detrimental to the young men and women who box there. As a community of boxing fans, coaches, athletes and supporters we owe it to our love of the sport to get it right - regardless of whether such a regulatory body exists. We cannot allow cheaters into our gyms, our homes, or our wallets as cheating and similar behavior is what boxing seeks to discourage in boxers. I don't mean the in-the-ring stuff like ****ing on some kidneys or rubbing vaseline on a boxer's shoulders. There's at least a referee to boo when he can't police it. I mean the agreement that fight night it's truly the better man in there: Clean gloves. Clean wraps. Clean pee. Clean blood.

TL&DR: Steroid use could destroy an honorable sport (business aside) that plays a positive role for many of the most at-risk youth. We are better off with a single, regulatory organization for at least drug testing. Even without one, we need to do the right thing and always push back against cheating in our sport.

[BattlingNelson]

Great article. I hope Trish Dixon gets to ask those 10 questions to the proper people.

[BattlingNelson]

Clomifene isnt a "masking agent" nor does it "raise testosterone"

its used for post cycle therapy.

this information is also readily available online.


If these "sports writers" are going to talk about PEDs atleast spend the time to understand what you are writing about

Testosterone +50%

[Toffee]

I defended Benn from the beginning of this, but now I'm not so sure to be honest.

If he knowingly took something, or if Dr Sajjad is dodgy, then really, so disappointing that they do this.

Benn is young and strong and in his physical prime, with God given punching power inherited from his dad Nigel. There's no need to take a ped, so it really is ******. And all the millions he could've made from the fight.

Maybe he still can, but let's see the B sample and get to the bottom of this.

B sample means nothing and proves nothing. They're pointless in all but a miniscule fraction of cases. It's not there to confirm guilt as many seem to think... it's purely there to confirm that nothing went wrong when they tested the A sample. That happens so rarely as to be irrelevant.

As for whether he needed PEDs, he was about to go in the ring with a bigger man and would need to go 10 3 minute rounds with the bigger man. And let's be honest, probably with a bigger man who has every 'nutritionist' he needs. All boxers juice to some extent. Benn definitely needed to optimise his performance; his team just got it wrong.

[ruedboy]

What's the big deal? Benn only had a trace amount of clomiphene in his system and besides everybody knows it's widely added to the Brits fish n chips. Just give Benn a 6 month suspension and raise the amount of clomiphene allowed in a fighter's system.

[wileyhemi]

You're weird.

You're creepy

[BodyBagz]

List of deaths due to injuries sustained in boxing

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...ined_in_boxing

End of story

[Roadblock]

Boxing has already been blown to pieces long time ago and now fans just try to hold on whats left of it. It's dirty sport and always has been

Ive been involved and followed the sport for well over 50 yrs, its no different today than it's ever been, the world is different, communication is different, today bad news goes around the world in 10 minutes, if a few of the mainstream drum beaters want to focus on boxing then it's under the spotlight, just like when a dog kills somebody all of a sudden pit bulls have gone mad and biting people all over.

Every pro and high-level amateur sport has its dirty element no more or less than boxing, the trouble with competition is everybody wants to win and some will do anything to do that, its not just boxing.

[Toffee]

People seem to be missing something here.

The fight was on. The fighters passed all testing requirements set out by the BBBofC (ie UKAD tests). By definition the fighters were clean athletes. Just as many before them who had gone through testing.

But they voluntarily engaged and paid for additional testing that proved Benn wasn't clean. They did that themselves. Benn didn't get caught - he caught himself!

The point is, this was completely voluntary and separate to standard testing. If they hadn't done this, they would have fought with no PED questions at all.

So surely the bigger question is how many organisations and sanctioning bodies insist on this level of testing? If they don't, then it's fair to acknowledge that the fighters may not be clean in all of those organisations.

[Superduper]

Eddie Hearn has a lot to answer for in this sorry mess of my beloved sport.He should have his licence withdrawn .he hasn’t got any boxers interest at heart only making money. The only way to clear sports of drug cheats is a permanent ban in any sport.each of us are responsible for for what goes in our bodies