Dave Coldwell says he doesn’t see point of why the Chris Eubank Jr vs. Conor Benn fight had VADA testing if they and the British Boxing Board of Control were just going to ignore the results.
A lot of money was paid to have VADA testing, so when Benn came up positive for the banned drug clomifene, the fight should have been immediately canceled, but that’s not what happened.
Benn wasn’t suspended or seen as having violated anything because the BBBofC follows the UKAD results, not the VADA. Again, Coldwell doesn’t see why VADA was a part of the testing when their results weren’t going to be acknowledged.
“Why is it one minute VADA isn’t worth a piece of s**t. What is that about?” said Dave Coldwell to iFL TV about the positive drug test results for Conor Benn for his now canceled fight against Chris Eubank Jr.
“If it’s not worth, if the results you get off VADA is not worth it, why are you paying? I heard Adam say they’re paying thirty-five grand or something like that to have them on board for a show, but it cost some money.
“Why are you signed up for it? Why are you having them if it’s costing you money? If it’s not worth? Where is the public image if you fail VADA, the test? I don’t know why but the Board of Control don’t recognize VADA, but why?
“This way, the Board don’t explain s**t. They’re not even letting the fans know. We work in the sport. Why do you not recognize their test? Fighters failed on their test.
“You can’t recognize that as a failed test because you don’t sign up to them or whatever. I don’t get it. So, therefore, he’s [Benn] not suspended, and if he’s not suspended, but you’re prohibiting the show, you’re f****ing yourself as an organization.
“As far as my understanding is, they don’t recognize VADA; they’re testing. So that’s why he’s [Conor Benn] not being suspended. He’s not being seen to have had a violation of anything because the board don’t recognize that.
“So why is the test even there if you’re not going to recognize them? As the event, why are you going to have them there? I don’t even know. It just confuses you all because it makes the Board and everything around it look like they don’t know what they’re doing.
“So you can pass the UKAD test, but what difference does that make? If I took a VADA test on Thursday, the 12th, and I failed it, and on the 19th, I took a UKAD test and I passed it. It’s fine. What’s the big problem?
“Right now, I have nothing in my system. I’m fine, but I did a few days ago. So is that alright then, that’s fine? I’m a massive Conor Benn fan. I like him as a person, I like him as a fighter. I’ve been looking forward to this fight, but you’ve got to look at something and say, ‘How is that right?’ Why is that right?
“Obviously, he’s your man, and you’re doing everything you can to back him. While you’re getting that sorted, you can go on with the show and with the fight if you failed the test because otherwise, what is the point of having a drug test?
“If you’re going to fail a drug test, ‘Don’t worry about it; get the fight done, and then we’ll sort it out after. You failed the drug test. So your opponent is fighting a guy that failed a drug test. The fight happens, and then after, ‘Oh yeah, it was a failed drug test, yeah.’
“You can’t do that. You failed a drug test. That’s it; the fight is done. There’s a reason why there’s a drug test. If you fail a drug test, then the whole point of having a drug test is making sure you step into that ring clean. You run that race clean.
“The whole reason there is for that. You have your drug test after the fight, yes, but the random testing in completion; if you fail that drug test, you failed. What I’m saying is if there’s a failed test, you can’t go and fight.
“Three days after that news is broke, you can’t go and fight because what’s the point? I don’t see the point of the drug test if you’re just going to ignore the results,” said Coldwell.
