ALEXANDER POVETKIN’S ‘B’ sample from his most recent failed drug test has come up positive, casting doubts over his future in the sport.
The Russian tested positive for banned substance ostarine prior to his WBC eliminator against Bermane Stiverne in December, resulting in the fight being scrapped.
The ‘B’ sample was opened earlier this week and VADA confirmed it also tested positive for ostarine, however Povetkin’s promoter, Andrey Ryabinsky, still proclaims his charge’s innocence.
He claims that tests from an independent laboratory in Lausanne, Switzerland on Povetkin’s sample came up negative.
“An American laboratory confirmed ostarine was found in Povetkin’s ‘B’ sample. The tests given in an independent laboratory in Lausanne [Switzerland] are clean,” he wrote in a tweet.
He also points to the fact that minimal amounts of ostarine were found in Povetkin’s system, and that subsequent tests on December 13 and 15 were clean.
When Povetkin tested positive for ostarine, the WBC withdrew their recognition of the bout with Stiverne, who ultimately walked away from the fight. Johann Duhaupas stepped in to fight Povetkin but was violently knocked out.
It marked the second time Povetkin failed a drug test within a year, as in May of last year his shot at WBC heavyweight champion was scuppered at the last minute when he tested positive for meldonium.
After an appeal process, Povetkin was ultimately cleared to box again but ordered to undergo strict testing for 12 months, at his own expense. The WBC ruled that if he failed a test in that time, he would be banned from any fight sanctioned by them.
The WBC have not yet made a decision on these latest findings.
