Canelo Suspended Six Months By NSAC, Will Return In September

It’s now official that Canelo Alvarez won’t return to the ring until September. The Mexican superstar, who is considered by some to be the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world, was pulled from his rematch with Gennady Golovkin because of positive drug tests that revealed traces of banned substance clenbuterol in his body. A suspension was talked about but not finalized, because the Nevada State Athletic Commission would have to vote on it and approve it.

After meeting on Wednesday, however, the NSAC voted unanimously to suspend Canelo. The suspension is retroactive to the first failed drug test, making him eligible to come back in August. His promoter, Golden Boy, has already targeted a return for September 15, in Las Vegas. As a rematch with Golovkin would be the biggest payday of both fighters’ careers, that will almost certainly be the fight booked for Canelo’s comeback. When the rematch was originally cancelled, Canelo showed interest in rescheduling the fight as soon as possible.

Story reveals that despite boasts of @Canelo numerous drug tests, the Feb. 17 sample was the first he ever gave while in Mexico. A true surprise test…

— Lance Pugmire (@latimespugmire) April 18, 2018

Clenbuterol, the substance that caused the failed drug tests, is commonly found in Mexican meats. While Canelo was drug tested many times in the past, this was his first one in Mexico, which may be the reason behind clenbuterol traces being present in his system. Golden Boy’s statement backs up Canelo, and the promoter believes that the failed drugs tests were because of Mexican meat. However, both Golden Boy and Canelo have accepted the suspension and will target a return on Mexican Independence Day weekend.

Canelo’s opponent for his cancelled May 5 fight, Gennady Golovkin, is still scheduled to fight on the same date but will likely see a much smaller payday after his opponent was changed to Vanes Martirosyan, who isn’t a recognizable name to casual fans and has lost two of his last three fights.