vargas rests positive for steroids
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Here's tha story....
The Nevada Athletic Commission will file a formal complaint against boxer Fernando Vargas next week, alleging he had a banned anabolic steroid in his system when he fought Oscar De La Hoya on Sept. 14 at Mandalay Bay. De La Hoya won the highly anticipated super welterweight championship fight by 11th-round technical knockout. It drew a sellout crowd of 11,425 and generated a live gate of $8.871 million, the seventh-highest in state history. Pay-per-view sales exceeded 900,000 and generated about $46 million. Marc Ratner, executive director of the Nevada Athletic Commission, confirmed that a post-fight urinalysis came back positive for stanozolol. It is the substance sprinter Ben Johnson was accused of using during the 1988 Olympics. Vargas is in Hawaii on vacation and couldn't be reached for comment. Shelly Finkel, one of his co-managers, said he heard about the test result Wednesday. He said he is not sure if Vargas will dispute the test result, but insisted that if it is accurate, Vargas knew nothing about taking steroids and must have taken them without his knowledge or consent. If the result is found accurate, Finkel said he has an idea who supplied it to Vargas, but would not speculate publicly. Ratner said the complaint will be filed early next week when deputy attorney general Keith Kizer returns from an out-of-state business trip. Vargas will have 30 days to respond. Luther Mack, chairman of the Nevada Athletic Commission, said Vargas will be dealt with harshly. Josh Barnett, an Ultimate Fighting Championship competitor, was suspended for six months on July 26 when, following a March 22 bout, a urinalysis found three anabolic agents not approved by the commission. When asked if Vargas could face the same punishment as Barnett if the tests are accurate, Mack reacted angrily. "No way -- it would be much harsher than that. That's not close," Mack said. "What he's looking at now, that's not even close. What (Barnett) did was an insult to our inspectors. What Vargas did is an insult to the state of Nevada and boxing people everywhere." Mack said state law gives the commission wide latitude in deciding upon a punishment. "We have to make sure that we let people know that we will not tolerate this, and any punishment we hand out will not be spanking one's hands," Mack said. "We have to send a message to boxers and promoters alike that we're not going to put up with this. "It's a mockery to think that he thought he could pull this off in the state of Nevada, to think he could get away with this. It's the biggest insult ever. It was a great fight in front of a packed house, and to have this happen, boy, I'll tell you, I'm disgusted." Carl Moretti, vice president at Main Events, the company that promotes Vargas, said he is still searching for information. Moretti said the positive test came back on the first specimen analyzed. He said the fighter gave two specimens and a result hasn't come back on the second. Ratner said he spoke to representatives of both fighters in July to make them aware that the boxers would be tested for steroids in the post-fight urinalysis. He said all promoters were notified July 1 of the commission's intent to test for steroids
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http://www.worldofboxing.com.au/
The Nevada Athletic Commission will file a formal complaint against boxer Fernando Vargas next week, alleging he had a banned anabolic steroid in his system when he fought Oscar De La Hoya on Sept. 14 at Mandalay Bay. De La Hoya won the highly anticipated super welterweight championship fight by 11th-round technical knockout. It drew a sellout crowd of 11,425 and generated a live gate of $8.871 million, the seventh-highest in state history. Pay-per-view sales exceeded 900,000 and generated about $46 million. Marc Ratner, executive director of the Nevada Athletic Commission, confirmed that a post-fight urinalysis came back positive for stanozolol. It is the substance sprinter Ben Johnson was accused of using during the 1988 Olympics. Vargas is in Hawaii on vacation and couldn't be reached for comment. Shelly Finkel, one of his co-managers, said he heard about the test result Wednesday. He said he is not sure if Vargas will dispute the test result, but insisted that if it is accurate, Vargas knew nothing about taking steroids and must have taken them without his knowledge or consent. If the result is found accurate, Finkel said he has an idea who supplied it to Vargas, but would not speculate publicly. Ratner said the complaint will be filed early next week when deputy attorney general Keith Kizer returns from an out-of-state business trip. Vargas will have 30 days to respond. Luther Mack, chairman of the Nevada Athletic Commission, said Vargas will be dealt with harshly. Josh Barnett, an Ultimate Fighting Championship competitor, was suspended for six months on July 26 when, following a March 22 bout, a urinalysis found three anabolic agents not approved by the commission. When asked if Vargas could face the same punishment as Barnett if the tests are accurate, Mack reacted angrily. "No way -- it would be much harsher than that. That's not close," Mack said. "What he's looking at now, that's not even close. What (Barnett) did was an insult to our inspectors. What Vargas did is an insult to the state of Nevada and boxing people everywhere." Mack said state law gives the commission wide latitude in deciding upon a punishment. "We have to make sure that we let people know that we will not tolerate this, and any punishment we hand out will not be spanking one's hands," Mack said. "We have to send a message to boxers and promoters alike that we're not going to put up with this. "It's a mockery to think that he thought he could pull this off in the state of Nevada, to think he could get away with this. It's the biggest insult ever. It was a great fight in front of a packed house, and to have this happen, boy, I'll tell you, I'm disgusted." Carl Moretti, vice president at Main Events, the company that promotes Vargas, said he is still searching for information. Moretti said the positive test came back on the first specimen analyzed. He said the fighter gave two specimens and a result hasn't come back on the second. Ratner said he spoke to representatives of both fighters in July to make them aware that the boxers would be tested for steroids in the post-fight urinalysis. He said all promoters were notified July 1 of the commission's intent to test for steroids
i get all boxing information from...
http://www.worldofboxing.com.au/
