LAS VEGAS – The Nevada Athletic Commission will file a formal complaint against boxer Fernando Vargas next week, alleging he had a banned anabolic steroid in his system when he fought Oscar De La Hoya on Sept. 14.
De La Hoya won the highly anticipated super welterweight championship fight by 11th-round technical knockout. It drew a sellout crowd of 11,425 at Mandalay Bay and generated a live gate of $8.871 million, the seventh-highest in state history. Pay-per-view sales exceeded 900,000 and generated about $46 million.
Marc Ratner, executive director of the Nevada Athletic Commission, told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that a post-fight urinalysis came back positive for stanozolol. It’s the substance that cost sprinter Ben Johnson his 1988 Olympic gold.
Vargas is in Hawaii on vacation and couldn’t be reached for comment.
Shelly Finkel, one of his co-managers, said he is not sure if Vargas will dispute the result, but insisted that if it is accurate, Vargas must have taken steroids without his knowledge or consent.
Once the complaint is filed, Vargas will have 30 days to respond.
Luther Mack, chairman of the Nevada Athletic Commission, said Vargas will be dealt with harshly.
‘‘It’s a mockery to think that he thought he could pull this off in the state of Nevada, to think he could get away with this,’’ Mack said. ‘‘It’s the biggest insult ever. It was a great fight in front of a packed house, and to have this happen, boy, I’ll tell you, I’m disgusted.’’