US heavyweight boxer Molina banned 2 years for doping

FILE – Mexican American boxer Eric Molina speaks at a press conference in London on November 4, 2016, ahead of his IBF World Heavyweight title fight against British boxer Anthony Joshua in Manchester on December 10, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / JUSTIN TALLIS

LONDON — American heavyweight Eric Molina was banned for two years for failing a drug test after losing to Anthony Joshua in December 2016, U.K. Anti-Doping said on Tuesday.

Molina tested positive for dexamethasone, a corticosteroid which is banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency for in-competition use, in a routine test after the IBF heavyweight title bout at Manchester Arena.

Molina, who was stopped by Joshua in the third round, did not deny taking the substance or contest the anti-doping rule violation, but he did question the length of the ban.

He argued he did not intentionally set out to cheat. Dexamethasone, used as an anti-inflammatory, was contained in a vitamin B12 supplement he frequently used called Tribedoce DX. Molina admitted to being injected with the supplement, and acknowledged he did not check the ingredients or ask for any expert advice before taking it.

The 36-year-old Molina was banned for two years by UKAD from the provisional suspension until Oct. 27, 2019.

His scheduled fight on Friday against Mariusz Wach in Warsaw, Poland, was suspended.

Molina has a 26-5 record. Three of those losses in the last three years include a knockout loss to Deontay Wilder in a WBC heavyweight title challenge in 2015.