LONDON: The US boxer Lamont Peterson, who is scheduled to rematch against British born Pakistani boxer Amir Khan on May 19, has been tested positive for banned substance.
The rumour about Peterson’s test failure curdled into grim reality, when his representatives were forced to admit after hours of claims on Twitter that the fighter had failed a drugs test.
Peterson took Khan’s WBA and IBF light-welterweight titles in his home town, Washington, last December and dithered before agreeing to give Khan a chance to get his titles back. It was not made clear when he tested positive.
Peterson’s attorney, Jeff Fried, issued the following statement late on Monday: “We have tremendous respect for VADA [Voluntary Anti-Doping Association] and its mission. Lamont, [his trainer] Barry [Hunter] and the entire team emphatically support random drug-testing in the most comprehensive manner possible.
“We are working expeditiously with a team of pathologists and other medical specialists. Lamont has never had a positive test either before or after this isolated occurrence and we plan to submit medical findings by close of Tuesday reflecting the actual facts in support of Lamont’s good faith intentions and the requirements of the commission.”