ANTHONY JOSHUA claims boxing is being damaged by a serious doping problem.
Dillian Whyte was kicked off Saturday’s grudge trilogy following adverse analytical findings in his Vada drug tests, leaving the sold-out O2 PPV event hanging by a thread.
Anthony Joshua’s fight with Dillian Whyte will not be going ahead after Whyte failed a drug testRichard Pelham / The Sun
GettyFinnish boxer Robert Helenius has stepped in to fight Joshua[/caption]
Robert Helenius has jumped in to save the day — but Brit heavyweight Joshua said: “There’s a doping problem in the sport definitely. I don’t really mix inside the boxing industry but I know it’s a problem.
“How can people get away with doping if you are getting random drug tests?
“I get drug tested all year round, every quarter I have to submit my whereabouts; where I am going to be, every day, for an hour of the day, so they can turn up randomly.
“I have submitted that every day since 2011. So I don’t know why I am under this pressure but all these other boxers aren’t.
“It damages the sport. We lost the fight and nearly lost the card because of this situation.”
Whyte’s adverse findings gave AJ an open goal to stick the boot into the man he lost to as a 2009 amateur and beat in a 2015 British title bout.
Instead, he took the diplomatic route and said he hopes his old foe proves his innocence.
He said: “I don’t wish Dillian any bad but his reputation is tarnished.”
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AJ will now take on 39-year-old Finn Helenius, who boxed in a 15th Century Swedish castle only last Saturday.
He said: “Helenius has two arms and is a good fighter, who won at the weekend.”
AJ is laughing at the drug cheats who had the front to accuse him of juicing.
American Jarrell Miller blew a shot at the WBA, IBF and WBO titles when he was caught taking a cocktail of steroids ahead of their planned 2019 fight.
And Whyte made repeated suggestions that Joshua offered him short-notice fights so he could cheat before being tested.
But Whyte is now fighting a career-threatening ban after adverse analytical findings, returned in his Voluntary Anti-Doping Association tests, ahead of the now-axed Saturday night clash.
Joshua faced rigorous testing before he became a national treasure, and target, by winning gold at the London 2012 Olympics. And, though he stops short of hammering Miller and Whyte, he is grinning at their hypocrisy.
Ahead of his hastily arranged replacement bout with Helenius, Joshua said: “It’s funny the two people who accused me have popped dirty themselves.
“Maybe they did it because of my physique or my success, my rise, it maybe didn’t make sense to them but it’s God-gifted and a lot of hard work.
“I have a long history of being drug tested and sometimes you have to question the person who keeps pointing the finger.”
AJ woke up to the Whyte news on Saturday morning and remained focused on fighting for his fans.
He said: “I got the news at 7am. My initial reaction was, ‘What’s next?’ I had two options — go ahead or cancel?
“Am I surprised? It happens in boxing, it’s not the first and won’t be the last. So no, I was not surprised.
“It is a dangerous sport but I am not disgusted. It doesn’t fill me with anger, no, but it’s not good.”
Supersub Helenius — who went 12 rounds with Brixton brawler Whyte in 2017 — says the UK needs to match his homeland and get tougher on cheats.
The Finn said: “Anti-doping should be the same in every country.
“In your country when Dillian gets caught, everybody just thinks, ‘Oh, it’s boxing’ and nobody cares.
“In Finland, if I got caught I would be lynched for my whole life.”