Heavyweight contender Luis Ortiz failed a drug test and putting his November 4th title shot with WBC Deontay Wilder in jeopardy.
According to the letter sent by VADA president Dr. Margaret Goodman to Sulaiman and others disclosing the positive test, a copy of which was obtained by ESPN, Ortiz gave a urine sample for a random drug test conducted on Sept. 22 at his training camp in Miami. The results were returned on Thursday, and Ortiz’s “A” sample tested positive for the banned diuretics chlorothiazide and hydrochlorothiazide, which are used to treat high blood pressure but also can be used as masking agents for performance-enhancing drug use.
“I can verify the information Mauricio put out,” DiBella, promoter of the fight, told ESPN. “I’m flabbergasted and particularly crestfallen for my fighter. Deontay Wilder is a great champion and a clean champion and probably has been victimized more than any other fighter in the history of the sport.”
“Stay clean, because we’ll be checking,” Wilder told Ortiz. “Stay clean. Don’t f— this up for me, nor you, because I’m gonna prove to the world that I am the best.”
“It is sad for the sport, and I just hope something even more can be done about this situation before it ruins the sport of boxing,” Wilder told ESPN in February, before he faced Washington. “I want to see some punishment done. I want to see if you do this, if you put steroids or anything that has your body doing what it is not naturally supposed to do, I think you should not only get suspended, but maybe indefinitely.
“They need to take their career away, because this is ridiculous. I am naturally strong without weights. Without training. With anything, I am God-given, Alabama-country strong. I have always been that way. But just imagine if I used anything to enhance my body. Did you see my fight with [Artur] Szpilka? Just imagine if I had something in my body. That man would have been dead, because I thought he was dead. I hope it just gets cleaned up.”
DiBella said he would deal with things on Friday and planned to talk to Wilder’s team, Barclays Center officials and Showtime Sports boss Stephen Espinoza.
“I want to get a good night sleep and deal with it on Friday,” DiBella said.
