Testing Testing
By BJ Murray
May 1, 2011
What would you do if someone asked questioned your character and asked you to take a test? Some of you would be very upset with the notion. For me personally I would also be upset, but I would take the test to prove them wrong. In America steroids has been a hot topic since Sammy Sosa, Mark McGwire, and Barry Bonds started hitting 65+ homerun in baseball and they congressional hearings. I was never big on steroids in baseball because I didn't follow it that much and out of that long list of players that came out it was only a few that performed significantly better.This is not to say I condone using steroids in sports.
For me steroids in baseball and boxing is not comparable. Hitting baseball and trying to inflict pain on someones face or body is unequal. Each time these combatants get in the square ring there is a big risk of dying for from one punch to a accumulation of punches. Since the Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao negotiations broke down steroids has become a hot topic in boxing. Steroid has been in boxing for quite some time but most of the time it has been sweep quietly under the rug. The names that has been linked to steroids are Shane Mosley, Roy Jones, James Toney, Fernando Vargas, Richard Hall, and countless others. My question to you is do we give all these free passes like this never happened? Thou I do not agree with the government witch hunt of Barry Bonds which wasted tax payers money, why was there no investigation into boxing?
When I heard Floyd Mayweather would be asking for random drug testing in all his fights for now on I said great. My thoughts was now they will fix some of the problems in boxing. Floyd could have went to Keith Kizer the head of the commission and petition for new testing but he was not that serious about it. My biggest problem with the test procedure that is being conducted now is are only catching people after the fight which is horrible. By the time the commission catches them the damage can be already done and someone could lose they life in that ring. Will it take someone losing there life in the ring before the commission change the rule.
Often other fighters agree with Floyd that we need random drug testing, but none have stood up and petition for it to happen. Since Floyd has made those statement only Saulerland Promotion has made the fighter have random drug test for each fight. Some have even made request for drug tests before and after the contracts was signed, but none was serious enough to take it up to people that can change the testing system. Bernard Hopkins stood up and fought for the Muhammad Ali Act, Floyd stood up to belt organization. One has to wonder which boxer will stand and fight for random drug test or will they just accuse other fighter of being on something.
The fans are tired of hearing about you want certain opponents to take drug test the gimmicks is up. If you are serious about it, then do something about it and talk to to the people that can change it for the better of the sport.
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