Report: Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. tests positive for marijuana use
Less than a week after losing a decision to Sergio Martinez in Las Vegas, it was announced Wednesday that former middleweight title contender Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. has tested positive for marijuana use.
According to Top Rank president Bob Arum, Chavez's post-fight urine sample came back positive for marijuana use, according to ESPN.com.
"The commission let (Top Rank's Carl) Moretti know (Tuesday) night that he tested positive," Arum said. "I can't really get excited about it. There's no promoter in boxing who could pass the marijuana test, including myself.
"Julio is going to have to explain to the commission what happened and the commission will be guided accordingly. If there was a trace of marijuana, to me, it's not the same as using a performance-enhancing drug. That is cheating."
Besides being illegal in most states, marijuana use is also banned by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
Commission executive director Keith Kizer confirmed to ESPN that Chavez's test was indeed positive after the fight. Results from other tests that were conducted prior to the fight that look for steroid use and other drug use have not come back yet from the testing lab, Kizer said.
"I will release the results from the event once I get them all back, but Top Rank's statement is an accurate reflection of the conversation I had with them (Tuesday)," Kizer said. "We had a positive test, one from that card."
Chavez has now twice tested positive for a banned substance and tested positive a third time for a banned substance or alcohol. He tested positive for use of Furosemide in November 2009, and was fined $10,000 and suspended from fighting for seven months. He then was arrested for DUI in Los Angeles this past January, and subsequently reached a plea deal that included three years of probation.
The Nevada commission could elect to take a number of different actions in light of the, all the way up to having his boxing license revoked and forfeiting the entire $3 million purse he earned from the fight with Martinez.
"Of course, we're disappointed in him," Arum said. "Hopefully, he can learn a lesson here and next time get in top shape for the fight. But it shows you the immaturity here. He needs to grow up."
