Terence Crawford‘s potential fight future may have taken a significant blow.
Crawford is currently plotting his next move after his triumph back in September, where he defeated Canelo Alvarez to become the new undisputed super-middleweight champion.
It was the latest division that ‘Bud’ was able to conquer, having previously been undisputed at both super-lightweight and welterweight, while he has also held world honours at 135lbs and 154lbs.
Crawford’s win over Canelo made him the only male fighter to ever become undisputed in three separate divisions, and while a rematch with the Mexican superstar could come next, there was also another bout out there for ‘Bud’ that could have seen him make more history.
The man in question is Janibek Alimkhanuly, the current WBO and IBF middleweight champion, who was set to meet WBA champion Erislandy Lara in a unification showdown on Saturday.
A victory there could have paved the way for a showdown with Crawford, but any hope of seeing that may now be over after it was reported by The Ring that Janibek had tested positive for a banned substance.
“Janibek Alimkhanuly has delivered an adverse analytical finding for a performance-enhancing drug following a VADA test, sources tell The Ring’s @MikeCoppinger. Janibek’s middleweight title unification vs. Erislandy Lara on Saturday is in serious jeopardy. Lara, boxing’s oldest male champion, could defend his WBA title vs. a different opponent.”
Janibek has since reacted to the news, claiming his innocence.
“I have always supported clean sport you know this well. I was surprised when I read the news. VADA took the first test and said everything was clean. I have not made any changes to my vitamins. I don’t know what happened with the second test, so I requested a retest.”
It means that Crawford’s likely option for his next bout remains the rematch with Canelo, after the Mexican icon indicated he plans to target that next.
