WBC president Jose Sulaiman supports PED testing for its title bouts

WBC president Jose Sulaiman, generally thought of as more of a tyrant than a divine ruler, may actually be making some sense nowadays. In an interview with the Manila Standard Sulaiman has stated he was wanting to change the WBC's rules in order to attain random drug testing for the WBC's championsip fights. One thing Sulaiman mentioned that is a bit different than normal is the possibility of testing hair follicles rather than doing blood exams.

Here is what Sulaiman had to say on the topic of random drug tests:

"The WBC has a medical recommendation since our convention in Las Vegas last year and it has been on study to amend the rules to have it in addition to the pre-weigh in 30 days before the event."

The WBC president also told us - "There are also considerations about the specific test that we would prefer, as well as the form of assuring certainty of the sample" which are important considerations.

"One thing is a boxer having to take a medication, and another thing is to take drugs to be on an advantage over his rival."

This is probably the most sense I have ever heard from Jose Sulaiman. I don't know what has gotten into the man, but if he is serious about implementing random drug tests into WBC title fights then I will heavily applaud him. Say what you want about his previous sneaky ways and sometimes condescending tone, the WBC president has a lot of power and influence. If he were to actually accomplish this feat then perhaps other sanctioning bodies would follow suit.

One big thing under consideration is the testing of hair follicles rather than blood. Sulaiman says in the article they are going over recommendations for testing methods, and this is the big one. In terms of testing hair follicles rather than blood, here is what the article had to say:

LIVESTRONG.com states "Hair follicle tests determine if individuals use illegal substances or performance enhancing medications. These tests prove useful for testing employees, athletes and students. Hair follicle tests can detect substances used for a longer time frame than blood or urine tests. These tests can also analyze nutrient and mineral levels in the body."

If hair follicles can detect illegal substances for a longer time frame than blood then I will be for it. However, I'm sure that more information will gradually come out in terms of the debate between testing blood or hair follicles, and we will be able to see for sure which is the better, more efficient test.

My main concern here is that this becomes just another thing that gradually passes with time, and a few months from now we are all asking, "Hey whatever happened to random testing the WBC was going to do?" Another point of contention is how will the WBC treat some of its favorite fighters, most notably Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.

Regardless, as of now this could be a huge step in the right direction. Let's hope this gets pushed through.