Anthony Joshua’s scheduled rematch against Dillian Whyte has been cancelled, after Whyte “returned adverse analytical findings” in a random anti-doping test.
The Voluntary Anti-Doping Association said it had informed the Association of Boxing Commissions and the British Boxing Board of Control that a “random anti-doping protocol” undertaken by Whyte had returned the adverse findings.
A statement by the fight promoter, Matchroom Sport said: “Today, the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association (Vada) informed Matchroom, the Association of Boxing Commissions and the British Boxing Board of Control that Dillian Whyte had returned adverse analytical findings as part of a random anti-doping protocol.
“In light of this news, the fight will be cancelled, and a full investigation will be conducted,” the statement added. The bout had been due to take place at London’s O2 Arena on Saturday 12 August.
Whyte lost his unbeaten 16-fight record when he was stopped by Joshua at the same venue in December 2015, while contesting the vacant British heavyweight title.A rematch was announced in early July after talks over Joshua taking on Tyson Fury broke down.
Joshua, a former world champion, has also been linked with a fight against Deontay Wilder in Saudi Arabia. Whyte recovered by winning his next 11 fights and after losing to Alexander Povetkin in 2020, he gained revenge by stopping the Russian in a rematch.
Defeat to Fury in a WBC world title fight at Wembley in April 2022 was followed by a points win over the American Jermaine Franklin the following November.
Source: theguardian