Hearn: Joshua-Miller in doubt after Miller failed VADA test

By Keith Idec

Eddie Hearn hinted Tuesday night that Anthony Joshua would still be fighting on June 1st at Madison Square Garden.

Whether Jarrell Miller remains or not his opponent has apparently not yet been determined. Hearn, Joshua's promoter, also confirmed the adverse outcome of Miller's urine sample sent to the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association on March 20.

VADA has been mandated to administer the performance-enhancing drug testing of its fight for the 12-round heavyweight title scheduled in six weeks from Saturday night in New York. ESPN.com was the first to report Tuesday night that Miller had obtained a positive test result on GW 501516, also known as endurobol, a banned substance capable of burning excess fat, accelerating it. recovery during training and greatly improve stamina.

Hearn released a statement Tuesday night on his Twitter account, in which he said: VADA informed us that an adverse finding had been found in Jarrell Miller's sample collected on March 20, 2019. We are working with all parties concerned and we will inform them in more detail soon. AJ's preparation continues on June 1st at MSG.

Dmitriy Salita, Miller's co-promoter, also issued a statement to BoxingScene.com late Tuesday night.

"We are getting more information on the VADA discovery and we will have more to say about this evolving situation," Salita said. "Meanwhile, Jarrell continues to train for his June 1 fight against Anthony Joshua."

If Miller (23-0-1, 20 KOs) is withdrawn from his fight, any potential replacement of the Brooklyn native would have about a month and a half to prepare to face Joshua.

If this failure prevents Miller from fighting for Joshua's IBF, IBO, WBA and WBO titles, it will also cost him a $ 6.5 million payout, by far the biggest purse of his career. Joshua, 29 (22-0, 21 KOs), a superstar of the British public, is expected to receive more than $ 30 million for his debut in the United States.

Miller, who talks a lot in trash, accused Joshua of using DEPs before and after the fight.

However, it is Miller who failed a PED test almost five years ago, while he was also a kickboxer. The California State Athletic Commission suspended Miller for nine months and fined him $ 2,500 for a positive result in June 2014 with methylhexaneamine, a dietary supplement used to lose weight and improve sports performance.

Miller, 30, explained during the press tour almost two months ago, in an effort to promote his fight against Joshua, that he had failed this test because he was using a product he did not know about. It was on the list of banned substances.

Keith Idec is a senior writer / columnist for BoxingScene.com. You can contact him on Twitter @ Idecboxing.