338 SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA LAW REVIEW [Vol. 87:335
recognize this problem,
15
as PEDs have become as much of a hot-button
issue in prizefighting as it was in baseball during the steroid-rampant era of
the 1990s.
16
However, the inherent nature of the sport of boxing, along
with its unique structural features, requires a solution somewhat different
from those proposed in other sports.
In boxing, the issue of PED testing gained steam in 2010 when Floyd
Mayweather was negotiating a fight with Manny Pacquiao. Mayweather,
the current pound-for-pound champion
17
and pay-per-view star, demanded
that both fighters submit to PED testing by the United States Anti-Doping
Agency (“USADA”) in addition to the customary and required state
athletic commission and sanctioning organization drug testing.
18
Mayweather, among other boxers,
19
had voiced suspicions that Pacquiao
used PEDs as he conquered weight class after weight class, seemingly
gaining strength and power as he became an eight-division world
champion.
20
Pacquiao refused, declaring that although he was a clean
fighter, Mayweather had no right to dictate such terms to him, and insisted
that he would only undergo testing under the usual mandatory state rules.
21
15. See, e.g., Steve Kim, The Perils of Boxing, SPORTS ON EARTH (Oct. 24, 2013),
http://www.sportsonearth.com/article/63283528/ (“Only now is boxing beginning to understand that
PEDs are every bit as prevalent in their game as Major League Baseball or the NFL.”).
16. Steve Kim, The Soapbox—Dec. 1, 2012, MAXBOXING.COM,
http://www.maxboxing.com/news/max-boxing-news/the-soapbox--dec-1-2012 (last visited Dec. 25,
2013).
17. Pound for Pound, THE RING, http://ringtv.craveonline.com/ratings (last visited Dec. 25,
2013).
18. Gabriel Montoya, Azad Championship Report—Floyd Mayweather and the New Wave of
Drug Testing in Boxing, MAXBOXING.COM, http://www.maxboxing.com/news/max-boxing-news/azad-
championship-report---floyd-mayweather-and-the-new-wave-of-drug-testing-in-boxing (last visited
Dec. 25, 2013).
19. Former champion Jorge Arce has said that he believes Pacquiao is using PEDs. Paul Magno,
Arce: Pacquiao Is Using PEDs, ‘That’s for Sure,’ YAHOO! SPORTS (Feb. 19, 2013, 5:37 AM),
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/arce-pacquiao-using-peds-thats-sure-103700827--box.html. Current
champion Paulie Malignaggi also hinted that he believed Pacquiao was using PEDs, but refused to get
into specifics. Ryan Burton, Malignaggi Blasts Diaz, Feels Weird About Manny Pacquiao,
BOXINGSCENE.COM, www.boxingscene.com/malignaggi-blasts-diaz-feels-weird-about-manny-
pacquiao--23552 (last updated Nov. 18, 2009).
20. Kevin Iole, Floyd Mayweather Jr. Rants About Manny Pacquiao, PED Use and Bob Arum’s
Untruths, YAHOO! SPORTS (May 2, 2012, 1:49 AM), http://sports.yahoo.com/news/boxing--floyd-
mayweather-jr--rants-about-manny-pacquiao-and-bob-arum.html. Pacquiao turned professional fighting
at 106 pounds, eventually conquering eight weight classes and moving all the way up to 154 pounds to
beat Antonio Margarito for a junior middleweight title. Tim Starks, Manny Pacquiao: The Universe’s
Questions, Answered, QUEENSBERRY RULES (Sept. 9, 2011), http://www.queensberry-rules.com/2011-
articles/september/manny-pacquiao-the-universes-questions-answered.html.
21. See John Whisler, Mayweather Talking Pacquiao, but Drug Tests, Too, MYSA,
http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/boxing/article/Mayweather-talking-Pacquiao-but-drug-tests-too-
1450425.php (last updated July 3, 2011, 12:01 AM).