Independent body to handle Maidana- Alexander testing

Pre- and post-fight urine samples will be taken from former WBC/IBF junior welterweight titleholder Devon Alexander and Marcos Maidana, who will be tested for "both illegal drugs and steroids" for their welterweight clash on Feb. 25 at the Scottrade Center in Alexander's hometown of St. Louis, Mo.

Tim Lueckenhoff,  the excutive director of Missouri Office of Athletics, has mandated that Golden Boy Promotions hire an independant organization to conduct the testing on both fighters in response to insinuations by Maidana's advisor, Sebastian Contursi, that Alexander has been using performance enhancing drugs.

Missouri's commission regularly performs anti-doping testing on all boxing contestants, but the procedures are usually carried out by the state's trained inspectors.

In light of Contursi's assertions, however, Lueckenhoff charged Golden Boy Promotions with hiring and paying for Lab Corp's specialized procedures for Maidana-Alexander.

"What will happen is that a representative of Lab Corp will come to the actual licensing and physical portion at the hotel on Friday afternoon. I've told both fighters that they will give the sample at approximately 4 p.m. It will be a urine sample as we've talked about," said Lueckenhoff.

"From that point, they will go to the weigh-in, which will be at a different location at the City Hall, and then, they will be free to do whatever at that point. But after the fight, they've been told again that they will be escorted after television interviews directly to the locker room. They will not be able to leave and they will only be able to drink water. They will then have to provide the urine sample again before they leave the room."

Lueckenhoff emphasized that refusal to participate in the testing will be considered a violation.

"The samples are going to be requested, and if they refuse, then that will be the point where my office will take action against them for refusing the sample," said Lueckenhoff. "If they refuse to do that here, then it's a violation."

Lem Satterfield can be reached at lemuel.satterfield@gmail.com