Joseph Parker is facing a multi-year ban after testing positive for cocaine on the day of his heavyweight fight with Britain’s Fabio Wardley.
The former World Champion suffered a dramatic 11th-round defeat to Wardley last month in a fight to determine who would get the next shot at undisputed champion Oleksandr Usyk.
Parker was ahead on the scorecards heading into the final rounds before being controversially stopped by the Ipswich fighter at the O2 Arena.
However, the Kiwi boxer’s immediate future in the sport has been thrown into doubt after The Sun reported that the 33-year-old has returned an adverse finding from a pre-fight anti-doping test.
Parker was tested by the Voluntary Anti Doping Agency (VADA) on October 25, with the A-sample testing positive for cocaine.
The heavyweight boxer and his team will have the opportunity to test the B-sample, although in the vast majority of cases, both samples return the same result.
It is unclear how the substance entered Parker’s system, although Cocaine metabolite benzoylecgonine traces usually only remain in urine for around four days.
That would suggest that contact with the drug would have taken place in fight week.
A source close to Parker told the Sun: ‘I am absolutely shocked. This has been the first camp where Joe has all of his family around.
‘The camp had gone great and he put on a good performance in a great fight.’
The publication adds that Parker is said to currently be away on holiday with his family following his fight with Wardley.
While cocaine is not a performance-enhancing drug, its use is strictly prohibited during ‘in-competition’ periods and carries the potential of a two-year ban.
The VADA will now hand their findings over to the UK Anti-Doping Agency (UKAD) and the British Boxing Board of Control, who license the fight and deal with any potential drug-related punishments.
In 2018, British light heavyweight boxer Liam Cameron was banned from the sport for four years after the UKAD announced he tested positive for benzoylecgonine, a metabolite of cocaine. Cameron denied any wrongdoing at the time.
Parker, who was born in Auckland, moved his family to Ireland to be nearer to his coach, Andy Lee, and his training camp in Dublin.
The heavyweight previously claimed the WBO heavyweight title in 2016 with a victory over Andy Ruiz and has won 36 of his 40 professional fights.
Metro has approached Parker’s management for comment.
For more stories like this, check our sport page.
Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.