1 Blame Your Brother
In May 2015, Barry Awad, better known as Kid Galahad, was banned for two years after one of his drug tests showed traces of stanozolol, an anabolic steroid. He blamed the results on his brother adding the protein shake.
2 Blame an uncastrated wild boar
On June 24, 2016, the date of his rematch with Wladimir Klitschko being postponed, Tyson Fury was charged by the UK Anti-Doping Agency with “drugged substances” from a sample taken in February 2015. Substances in question is nandrolone, an anabolic. steroids with tissue-building properties that Fury believes were present in an uncastrated wild boar he ate.
3 Blame the dirty beef
In March 2018, Saúl “Canelo” Álvarez, the sport’s biggest star, tested positive for clenbuterol, a drug commonly used to increase muscle mass and cardiovascular performance. He blamed the result on eating contaminated beef and was banned for six months.
4 Blame it on asthma
“Let’s go, champion! Let’s go, champion!” For a man who has trouble breathing, Shannon Briggs certainly likes to talk a lot. That said, asthma helps when elevated testosterone levels show up on your drug test, as was the case with Briggs in 2017.
5 Blame the blocked nose
In 2018, Billy Joe Saunders watched his fight against Demetrius Andrade disappear when he tested positive for the banned stimulant oxilofrine. His team said the substance was a “regular decongestant spray” and did not contravene UK Anti-Doping regulations when used “out of competition”.
6 Blame it on high blood pressure
In September 2017, it was reported that Cuban heavyweight boxer Luis Ortiz had failed a drug test for chlorothiazide, a diuretic used not only to treat high blood pressure but also approved used as a cover-up for performance-enhancing drugs.
7 Blame Russia
Lucas Browne said he was clean when he went to Chechnya to meet KO Ruslan Chagaev, the most beloved team in his hometown, in 2016, but somehow he came back with news of a failed test defeat for clenbuterol. It can only mean that his food or drink has been overpriced – by the Russians.
8 Blame illuminati
After failing a synthetic testosterone PED test after a fight with Steve Cunningham in 2015, former light-heavyweight champion Antonio Tarver said: “It was a defining job. I don’t know what or who is behind this crap. But all I know is that I am pure. I am pure – period.
9 Blame Low Testosterone
Boxers are usually filled with testosterone, but Lamont Peterson, who is struggling in the field, sees nothing wrong with using synthetic testosterone before his aborted 2012 fight with Amir Khan. Now, sadly, many people use this excuse.
10 Blame the game
Heavyweight Larry Olubamiwo introduced the concept of “can’t beat them, join them” in 2012. He confessed to taking 13 illegal substances and then blamed the others for essentially having pressure him to follow their lead.
The Egg Man: Apparently Conor Benn Just Likes Them (Julian Finney/Getty Images)
