20 March 2010 / REUTERS, NEW YORK
Floyd Mayweather and Shane Mosley have agreed to begin an Olympic-style drug testing programme from Monday ahead of their May 1 bout in Las Vegas, the boxers said in a conference call.
The US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) protocol includes random blood tests before and after the fight. A proposed showdown between Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao fell through in January after the Filipino refused to yield to the American’s demand for random blood testing within three weeks of the bout. “I just want to show the world that boxing is a clean sport and it is my hope that all fighters will take a similar stance,” said Mayweather on Thursday. Mosley agreed the program made sense. “I think the testing program is a great idea and I did not hesitate for a minute about agreeing to it.” Samples are screened for drugs currently banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), including human growth hormone. USADA chief Travis Tygart hailed their decision to submit to stringent testing. “I believe today is another watershed moment in the advancement of anti-doping,” Tygart said in the conference call.
