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The highly anticipated rematch between Anthony Joshua and Dillian Whyte has been officially cancelled due to a failed drugs test result by Whyte.
Promoter Eddie Hearn announced on Saturday, August 5, that Whyte had returned “adverse analytical findings” in a VADA test just a week before the scheduled fight.
Matchroom, Hearn’s company, released a statement saying, “Today, the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association (VADA) informed Matchroom, the Association of Boxing Commissions, and the British Boxing Board of Control about Dillian Whyte’s positive test as part of a random anti-doping protocol. In light of this news, the fight will be cancelled, and a full investigation will be conducted. Further information on the event will follow.”
As of now, it remains uncertain whether Anthony Joshua will seek a replacement opponent for the scheduled fight.
The cancellation is not the first time Whyte has faced such a situation. In 2012, he tested positive for the banned stimulant methylhexaneamine in a UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) test, leading to a two-year ban from boxing by the National Anti-Doping Panel (NADP). Despite claiming that he accidentally ingested the substance through an over-the-counter supplement, the panel still imposed the ban.
He returned to boxing in 2014 and gained fame after his defeat to Anthony Joshua in 2015, subsequently campaigning for a WBC world title shot.
Notably, before his win over Oscar Rivas in 2019, Whyte tested positive for the metabolites of a steroid (reported to be dianabol) in another UKAD test. However, he was allowed to fight, and news of the positive test only surfaced after his victory.
In a long legal process, UKAD ultimately cleared Whyte of any wrongdoing and did not impose a ban, allowing him to continue his career.
In 2022, Dillian Whyte finally received his WBC world title shot but was knocked out by Tyson Fury in the championship bout.
