Star boxer Ryan Garcia requested Monday that his B-sample be analyzed, in line with a letter obtained by ESPN, related to opposed findings in his A-sample for the performance-enhancing drug Ostarine the day earlier than and the day of his upset win over Devin Haney final month.
Garcia, 25, had till Saturday to make the request. Garcia’s A-sample additionally screened optimistic for 19-Norandrosterone, in line with the Voluntary Anti-Doping Affiliation letter that was despatched final Wednesday, however its presence is unconfirmed pending additional lab evaluation.
Ostarine is a selective androgen receptor modulator (SARM) that attaches to proteins within the physique and successfully tells muscle groups to develop. It’s used to assist efficiency by serving to athletes construct muscle mass and improve their fee of fats loss and likewise to extend stamina and restoration means.
Ostarine has been on the World Anti-Doping Company’s banned checklist since 2008 and in 2022 was listed as an anabolic agent by WADA, whose guidelines mandate that when urine samples are collected, they’re divided into A and B bottles.
The B-sample is a safeguard to make sure there was no lab contamination or error when the optimistic end result was returned on the preliminary A-sample. If the B-sample returns a unfavorable end result on this occasion, Garcia may very well be cleared.
If the B-sample additionally returns a optimistic end result, Garcia and his authorized staff should current an argument to show his innocence. He faces a suspension and a advantageous, and the results of his choice win over Haney shall be overturned if he is discovered responsible. The New York State Athletic Fee instructed ESPN final week that it “is in communication with VADA and is reviewing the matter.”
Garcia (25-1, 20 KOs) appeared to insinuate on social media that the opposed discovering was the results of Ashwagandha Root, prompting the maker of mentioned complement, Gaia Herbs, to launch a press release Thursday saying “opposite to any latest confusion [it] does not include Ostarine.”
“All people is aware of that I do not cheat,” Garcia mentioned in a video posted Wednesday on X, the day the opposed discovering was revealed. “By no means taken a steroid. … I do not even know the place to get steroids. … I barely take dietary supplements.”
Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions mentioned in a press release that they’re working with Garcia’s staff to “decide how this discovering got here to be.”
“Whoever acquired caught doping and admitted it? I feel [Garcia] would have been the primary [athlete] in historical past,” Haney, 25, mentioned Thursday on SportsCenter. “… As of proper now it would not be a [rematch] that I’d entertain. This man confirmed his character. He confirmed that he would do something to win, together with cheat. … He put my life in jeopardy. So now it is deeper than boxing with me.”
Ostarine has been utilized in boxing earlier than. Lucian Bute examined optimistic for it in 2016 following a draw with Badou Jack of their WBC tremendous middleweight title combat. The end result was modified to a DQ win for Jack.
Amir Khan was handed a two-year ban by UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) after he examined optimistic for Ostarine following his sixth-round TKO loss to Kell Brook in 2022.
Garcia floored Haney 3 times in the course of the majority-decision victory. Garcia additionally missed weight forward of the combat, registering 143.2 kilos for the WBC 140-pound title combat. Garcia paid Haney (31-1, 15 KOs) upward of $600,000 for his failure to make weight.