MAIN EVENTS RESPONDS TO BASHIR
By John McCormick

Trainer's request for pre-fight testing came too late

As previously reported on Boxingtalk, James Bashir, the trainer of heavyweight Eddie Chambers, asked promoter Main Events for random pre-fight drug testing for both Chambers and his opponent, Tomasz Adamek, prior to their June 16th showdown. Bashir, perhaps suspicious of Adamek, wanted the same random drug testing that recently resulted in pre-fight positive test results for Lamont Peterson and Andre Berto to be mandated for Adamek-Chambers. Bashir did not explictly state, but gave the impression that Main Events denied his request.

Boxingtalk called Kathy Duva of Main Events to get her side of the story this afternoon. Duva responded that Bashir's request could not be accomodated because it was not timely. "The type of random drug testing protocol that Bashir wants takes up to eight weeks to complete. Bashir contacted us last week [about three weeks before the fight] and requested it."

Although there will be no pre-fight testing, the New Jersey Board of Athletic Control will conduct tests on the boxers' urine samples that will be provided on fight night. It is Boxingtalk's understanding that HGH (human growth hormone) will not be tested for but steroids, amphetamines and other banned substances will be tested for. Pre-fight testing, especially in non-championship fights, is not the norm in the United States, although in light of recent failed pre-fight tests by Peterson and Berto, there is growing demand for it.  

In the recent cases of Peterson and Berto, both fighters were tested nearly a month before their A samples came back positive. Subsequently, it took another two weeks before the B sample tested positive. Although Bashir's request is understandable and comes from a good place, there is simply not enough time between now and fight night for any independent drug testing companies to conduct effective random drug testing.

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