Joseph Parker Appeals VADA Failure

Parker’s trainer, Andy Lee, confirmed that the legal response is already in motion. Under current anti-doping regulations, Parker could face a suspension of up to two years, which would be a devastating blow to the 34-year-old’s late-career resurgence. Lee made it clear that Parker’s team is doing everything they can to prove his innocence. 

Parker’s Future

“It really rocked me. I think it’s funny, as a coach, it’s probably your worst nightmare to find out that one of your fighters has failed a drug test. “But the situation is quite strange — to test on the day of the fight, for a substance like cocaine, which is not performance-enhancing. “It’s probably the worst thing that you could do, going into a fight, is take cocaine.

“There has been an internal investigation as a team. His manager, David Higgins and I, and other people in the team. This is not for me to say right now, but it will come out. We are working with lawyers in the UK and appealing the decision. [Parker] doesn’t know how long he is banned for. He doesn’t really know what the ruling is yet, but there will be some appeal. Joe is quite confident that he will be exonerated with the evidence that I have seen and heard from Joe and David Higgins.

“He’s training, but [the failed drugs test] has really shook him. He was just at a loss about how it got into his system. Joe’s quite philosophical about it because he’s got a great upbringing and he’s a man of faith. He believes it’ll come to light soon what happened and he’ll be exonerated. People know Joe, and I think he deserves the right to not be judged yet because of the person he is and the fighter he is,” Lee said

If Parker does suffer a ban, it will raise serious questions over his future. Parker will likely see any chance of a title shot disappear, as a two-year ban would make him 36. Parker also boxes at heavyweight, where inactivity is all the more damaging to a career. It would also tarnish his standing, with a major asterisk over his prior wins. However, if Parker can clear his name, there are plenty of big fights out there for him.