Anthony Joshua steps up search for new opponent with Jarrell Miller fight off

Keep your enemies closer: Anthony Joshua will be based just 30 miles from Jarrell Miller in the build-up to their fight
AFP/Getty Images
John Dillon17 April 2019

Anthony Joshua's team have stepped up their search for a new opponent after American Jarrell Miller was denied a license for their planned fight in New York following an “adverse” drugs test.

The June 1 date against Miller is off after the New York State Athletic Commission acted to effectively ban Miller.

The banned muscle growth and diet substance GW1516 (Endurobol) appeared in a sample given by Miller to the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association (VADA) on March 20.

Four-belt world champion Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn has told Standard Sport the show at Madison Square Garden will go ahead and the hunt for a replacement has already started.

Miller, 30, could appeal and apply again for a license after the submission of a second sample. However, the substance is on the banned list of the World Anti Doping Agency.

Hearn has a potential list of stand-in opponents including Cuban veteran Carlos Ortiz, Polish-American Adam Kowacki, the Bulgarian Kulat Pubrev , German Manuel Charr and the lesser-known US heavyweight Michael Hunter.

A total of 17,000 tickets for the event have already been sold with an expected 10,000 supporters planning to travel to support WBA, IBF, WBO and IBO champion Joshua on his debut in America.

Hearn said: “All we can do now is cast out the net for a replacement opponent.

“Either the second sample is going to have to be clear or Miller and his team will have to come with a very good reason to say why the test might be wrong.”

New Yorker Miller served a nine-month ban from kick-boxing after he tested positive for the banned substance methylhexaneamine in California in 2014.

The substance found in the latest VADA test taken on March 20 - GW1516 - is said to increase aerobic power and endurance for the obese to help with training and weight loss.

Miller is known for his extraordinary physique, which is much broader than most heavyweight boxers.

At six feet four inches, he weighed 315 lbs for his most recent fight against Bogdan Dinu in Kansas last November.

Miller’s co-promoter, Dmitriy Salita, said: “We are in the process of obtaining further information about Vada’s finding and will have more to say soon on this developing situation. In the meantime, Jarrell continues to train."

Miller accused 29-year-old Londoner Joshua of being “not clean” during a heated press conference in New York in February.

Joshua and Hearn dealt with a similar crisis when Bulgarian Pulev withdrew with injury nine days before a planned fight at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium in October, 2017.

More than 70,000 tickets had been sold and Frenchman Carlos Takam was drafted in as an emergency replacement.

VADA testing is paid for by Joshua’s promotional team for both boxers, with the Londoner insistent that any opponent takes part from 14 weeks before a fight date.

Heran added: “I was informed about this at 10pm on Tuesday. When I told AJ, he said – 'you dealt with the Pulev situation so I’m sure you’ll get us through this'.

“This is why we insist on VADA testing. If this guy was still in there banging away after 10, 11 rounds it could be dangerous.

“AJ is currently being tested three times a week – twice by VADA and once by UK anti-doping.”

The good news for Joshua is that he had staged only two sparring sessions aimed at preparing for Miller’s unique physical stature.

He will head to training camp in Florida in early May.

Hearn said: “It is not ideal but he still has seven weeks to prepare for a new opponent.”

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in