Joshua set for new opponent as Hearn claims Miller has failed second doping test
The two fighters had been due to meet in New York on June 1
Anthony Joshua’s promoters Matchroom will announce next week who the Briton’s new opponent for his IBF, WBA and WBO heavyweight title defence in New York will be after ruling out Jarrell Miller.
The American’s participation in the June 1 fight was jeopardised on Tuesday when the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association (VADA) informed both camps of an “adverse finding” in a drug-testing sample, leading to him being denied a licence for the date at Madison Square Garden.
Miller retained the right to request a further sample and to reapply for that licence to challenge Joshua in what will be the champion’s US debut. However, Matchroom’s Eddie Hearn now says he has learned of a second alleged doping violation by Miller, meaning that fight is now dead in the water.
It was on March 20 when there was an adverse finding for GW1516, a metabolic modulator also known as cardarine and endurobol.
Matchroom had already started the search for alternative opponents from the point of VADA’s first update, and Hearn wrote on social media on Friday: “We have now received news from VADA that Jarrell Miller has now failed a second separate test for a further substance.
“AJ’s June 1 opponent will be announced next week. If you don’t think you can beat him clean then delete my number!”
Responding to the initial adverse finding, Miller had written on Instagram on Thursday: “I have never knowingly taken any banned substance and when I found out the news I was totally shocked.
“My team and I stand for integrity, decency and honesty and together we will stand to fight this with everything we have.
“This was a voluntarily test that I was very happy to do and these results came just one week after another voluntarily test that I had taken which was completely clean.”
Attempts were made to contact representatives of both Miller and VADA, but neither were available for comment.
