According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, former two-time Welterweight world champion Andre Berto has tested positive for a banned substance which no puts in doubt his June 23rd rematch with Victor Ortiz.
Promoter Lou DiBella told ESPN.com he was unsure of what Berto tested positive for but confirmed the result.
“I know he tested positive,” DiBella said. “I have nothing else to say. I don’t know all of the details so I have nothing else to say.”
“Obviously, we are disappointed that Berto’s ‘B’ sample came back positive,” Schaefer, Ortiz’s promoter, told ESPN.com. “I was informed late Saturday of the ‘A’ sample testing positive and urged an immediate testing of the ‘B’ sample. We just got the results that the ‘B’ sample tested positive as well. It’s unfortunate. We have to see what happened because I don’t know.
“This is obviously a very unpleasant situation to say the least, but at the same time, there is no room for any form of performance-enhancing drug use in boxing. I am not accusing Berto of anything, but that happens when you want to clean up the sport and you agree as a fighter and promoter to go through these kinds of procedures. I hope this will lead athletes to be more careful with what they eat or drink or take. Everybody needs to educate themselves more about what is permitted and what it is not permitted. But if it takes two or three or four fights to be canceled, so be it. There can be zero tolerance for the use of banned substances.”
“At the present time, I cannot explain the positive drug test, which was provided as part of a voluntary anti-doping program in which I agreed to participate,” Berto said in a statement. “I know that I have never used any steroids or other banned substances, and I am investigating all possible causes of the positive test with my attorney, Howard Jacobs. I have never cheated, and all of my success has come from hard work and dedication.”
Berto has had Victor Conte, founder of the notorious Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative, in his training camp for this fight.
Conte, however, denied he had any involvement in the positive test.
“Andre Berto’s positive test for (norandrosterone) has absolutely nothing to do with me or any supplements I provided. Likely trace contamination,” Conte tweeted. “Andre has admitted to taking supplements other than what I provided without my knowledge. Apparently, something was contaminated.”
“We did our job. We stand by the integrity of the test and the testing process,” said Dr. Margaret Goodman, who heads VADA and is a former chief ringside physician for the Nevada State Athletic Commission. “It’s not our role to determine what comes next for Mr. Berto. At this point it would be inappropriate for me to discuss the matter further with the media.”
After the fight last year, Berto accused Ortiz of using performance-enhancing drugs in his upset victory. Now it is Berto who has tested positive, an irony not lost on Rolando Arellano, Ortiz’s manager.
“When you point the finger there’s three pointing back at you, but we will take the high road,” Arellano said. “We’re going to give this guy the benefit of the doubt.
“We want to fight him and he wants to fight us, so we are going to wait until there is a complete fact finding in this case. We know what VADA has to say and we’re curious what about what Berto has to say. Hopefully, there is something that went wrong. Maybe the jars got mixed up. But it doesn’t look that way. Victor will go on, but this is awful for boxing fans who wanted to see another fight of the year.”
Arellano said he informed Ortiz of Berto’s positive test and his response was “complete and utter silence. Then he said, ‘I’m going to the gym.'”
Schaefer and Showtime both told ESPN.com they have no intention of canceling the card. “This means another terrific fight that fans were looking forward to appears like it’s not going to happen,” Schaefer said. “I want to know what the origins of this (positive test) are. I have been told that it could have something to do with food contamination. But I’m not going to go and cancel the event. Let’s learn more, let’s see what will happen. In the meantime, my team is working behind the scenes to come up with an alternative opponent.”
Photo By Claudia Bacanegra
