Lawrence Okolie has pledged to clear his name after a failed drugs test led to the cancellation of his heavyweight bout against Tony Yoka this weekend. The British fighter, a former cruiserweight world champion who moved up to heavyweight, was scheduled to face the Frenchman in Paris on Saturday. Okolie is the No 1-ranked contender by the WBC, whose belt is held by Oleksandr Usyk.
In an announcement, promoter Queensberry said: “Last night the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association (Vada) informed Queensberry that Lawrence Okolie returned an adverse finding following an anti-doping test conducted ahead of the show. A further update regarding the event will be made in due course.” Queensberry later added that due to circumstances outside their control, the event had been cancelled.
Okolie took to Instagram to explain: “Before anyone starts imagining the worst, following my bicep injury last year, I sustained an elbow injury on the same arm during this camp. I had a treatment on it and now here we are. I truly hope sense prevails. I will of course be fully co-operating with all the relevant authorities and I’m confident any investigation will clear my name.”
Tuesday’s press conference to promote the bout was cancelled at the last minute before the fight was also called off. Yoka, who has a professional record of 15 victories and three defeats, took super-heavyweight gold at the 2016 Rio Olympics. He served a one-year ban imposed by the French anti-doping agency in 2018 for failing to give a doping sample three times in one year.
If the adverse finding is confirmed, Okolie could face a four-year ban from the sport. The case is now with Vada and other relevant authorities for further investigation.
