Tyson Fury could lose his two heavyweight belts due to positive test for cocaine
Heavyweight boxing champion Tyson Fury submitted a drug test earlier this month that was found to have cocaine present, putting his two belts in limbo.
England’s Fury, who withdrew last week from his scheduled Oct. 29 rematch against longtime former champion Wladimir Klitschko, submitted the sample on Sept. 22, in England, according to an ESPN.com report.
Fury (25-0, 18 knockouts) defeated Klitschko in a heavily chastised November 2015 bout that featured many segments of inactivity.
His promoter issued a cryptic statement Friday that Fury had been “declared medically unfit to fight,” and was advised that he required treatment before returning to boxing.
The sample was taken by the Nevada-based Voluntary Anti-Doping Assn. Fury also faces a hearing Nov. 4 for possible use of a banned performance-enhancing substance from a separate test.
The World Boxing Organization and World Boxing Assn. have taken the first steps toward stripping Fury’s belts, which would likely lead to Klitschko participating in a replacement title bout.
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