The much anticipated rematch between Canelo Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin on May 5 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vega has officially been cancelled. Nevada State Athletic Commission executive director Bob Bennett filed a formal complaint against Alvarez last week for doping violations, which all but guaranteed the match would be cancelled.
At a press conference today, Canelo and his attorney spoke with the media at Golden Boy offices in Los Angeles and confirmed that he'd be withdrawing from the middleweight championship fight. Alvarez had tested positive for the banned substance clenbuterol in two urine samples on February 17 and February 20, but he blamed contaminated Mexican meat for the traces of clenbuterol.
“I have always been a clean fighter and I always will be a clean fighter,” Alvarez said Tuesday during a conference call with reporters, according to Yahoo Sports. “I want to prove without a doubt that I have never intentionally ingested Clenbuterol. I have nothing to hide and I want to be open and transparent through this process. …. I have never taken illegal substances and this is no different.”
GGG recently spoke with reporters at his training camp in Big Bear Lake, California and accused Alvarez of knowingly cheating.
"Again with Mexican meat? Come on," Golovkin said, according to ESPN. "I told you, it's not Mexican meat. This is Canelo. This is his team. This is his promotion. Canelo is cheating. They're using these drugs, and everybody is just trying to pretend it's not happening.
"This guy, he knows. This is not his first day in boxing. He proves he gets benefits from everyone and he can get away with it. Check him on a lie detector and then we can find out everything."
The first match between Alvarez and GGG last September ended in a draw after one judge scored it 118-110 for Canelo, a second judge had it 115-113 for Golovkin and the third had it even. It's unclear who GGG will fight on May 5 now that Alvarez is out.
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