Eric Molina Given Two-Year Drug Suspension By UKAD
Former two-time world heavyweight title challenger Eric Molina has been suspended for two years following a failed drug test after losing to Anthony Joshua back in 2016.
The UKAD announced in a statement that Molina tested positive for the banned substance dexamethasone the day after unsuccessfully challenging for the IBF heavyweight on December 10, 2016. The two-year suspension is only retroactive to the date of a provisional suspension handed to him on October 28, 2017, meaning that his suspension is up on October 27, 2019.
“American boxer Eric Molina has been suspended from all sport for a period of two years following an Anti-Doping Rule Violation (ADRV).
Mr. Molina tested positive for the presence of the prohibited substance dexamethasone, following an In-Competition test on 11 December 2016, after his fight against Anthony Joshua. Mr. Molina was charged with an ADRV pursuant to Article 2.1 of the Anti-Doping Rules – ‘Presence of a Prohibited Substance or its Metabolites or Markers in an Athlete’s Sample.'”
Molina, who also unsuccessfully challenged for the WBC heavyweight title, was stopped in the third round against Joshua with the IBF title on the line. Despite testing positive and given a provisional suspension the following October, Molina has fought twice in 2017. Molina defeated Jamal Woods by majority decision last September, but then lost to Dominic Breazeale last November on the Deontay Wilder vs. Bermane Stiverne 2 card. Neither of those two fights took place in the United Kingdom where Molina fought Joshua and Molina is scheduled to fight former title challenger Mariusz Wach on May 25 in Poland.
The substance is on the list of banned substances on the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) website, but only during in-competition period.
