Key points:
- The Olympic-style VADA drug testing program for Canelo Alvarez’s October 31 fight with Christian Mbilli has not yet begun
- Sela, the Saudi-backed promoter, was expected to fund the program
- Less than a month remains before the two are scheduled to fight
- Neither camp has publicly explained the delay
Less than a month out from Canelo facing the new WBC super middleweight champion, and the drug testing programme both sides agreed to, hasn’t actually started yet.
Sela, the Saudi-backed outfit promoting the fight, was expected to fund an Olympic-style VADA testing programme in the run-up to October 31. Nothing’s been confirmed to have begun.
Why the delay matters more here than usual
VADA testing exists to catch anything well before fight night, not to rubber-stamp a result afterwards. The later it starts, the less time there is to run a proper cycle of random collections rather than a token check close to the fight itself.
Nobody’s saying why it’s late
No explanation from either camp so far. Could be simple admin. Could be something Sela’s still working through behind the scenes. Either way, the shrinking window is the story right now, not the fight itself.