Former Floyd Mayweather sparring partner Denis Douglin offered his thoughts on the Oscar Valdez weight cutting row currently stirring the sport.
Douglin, who shared rounds with Floyd Mayweather for the Conor McGregor fight, responded to ex-Floyd Mayweather team member Ishe Smith.
Ex-super-welterweight champion Smith has been one of the more vocal boxers to give Valdez a dressing down for his positive drug test.
The WBC super-featherweight ruler, Valdez, got flagged for Phentermine but can fight on September 10 due to a commission technicality.
Phentermine is a weight-cutting stimulant that WADA allows out of completion. VADA, the usual WBC method of testing, ban the drug.
At a hearing, the explanation given by Valdez got accepted by the Pascua Yaqui Tribe Athletic Commission. He now faces Robson Conceicao this weekend.
Plenty has gotten said about the decision to allow Valdez a pass. Smith, always a straight shooter, said the following: “If you use something that helps you cut weight, it is definitely a performing enhancing drug because it gives you an unfair advantage.
“Cutting weight is [F] ing awful. It’s the worst part of boxing. Ask a wife or a team how crabby boxers get close to a fight from it.”
Douglin, Mayweather’s chief training partner in 2017, agreed with “Sugar Shay” on his view. Both used the word “cheat” in further conversation.
“Straight like that! The mental battle of the weight cut is part of the challenge. Dealing with that, then Forgetting about it right away and focusing on getting your body back close to 100%before the fight.
“If you cheat that. You’re a cheater!”
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He added: “Cheating to cut weight is performance enhancing. The weight cut is low key one of the hardest things before a fight.
“More than just physically. It’s a mental challenge as well. If you cheat that, you’re a cheater, bro.”
Smith stated: “Cheating that process enhances your performance, no doubt. I don’t get boxing nowadays. I really don’t.
“But I never cheated the process, never cheated the game. Weight cutting sucks a–, and anyone who cheats that process is enhancing their performance.
“Same, I’ve been saying all day. If you cheat the process, allowing you not to suffer what’s natural, it’s the same thing as taking something to get stronger.”
There seems to be no let-up on the battering to Valdez’s reputation and the fact trainer Eddy Reynoso and campmate Canelo Alvarez was also involved in a storm back in 2018.
Canelo got banned for six months for Clenbuterol. He managed to recover his popularity quickly until questions rose again from this latest situation involving Valdez.
