Eddy Reynoso responds to growing doping concerns in boxing and explains why he’s now changing how he runs his camp

Doping has recently cast a shadow over Mexican boxing. First it was Jaime Munguía, flagged after his bout with Bruno Surace in May. Then came Francisco ‘Chihuas’ Rodríguez, following his surprise win over Galal Yafai in late June. Both fighters were accused of using banned substances while associated with Eddy Reynoso, the longtime trainer of Canelo Álvarez.

In an interview with Chava Rodríguez of ESPN Knockout, Reynoso explained that he doesn’t handle nutritional supplements for the fighters he trains, as that’s not his area of expertise. He also issued a press statement a few days ago claiming he had never even met ‘Chihuas’ Rodríguez prior to the fight against Yafai.

“I’m at peace with everything I’ve done in my career – I’ve always been a trainer who believes in playing fair,” Reynoso said. “I don’t know anything about supplements. I haven’t studied that field.”

He added that from now on, he’ll be far more selective when it comes to choosing who he trains. His goal is to gain full control over what fighters consume, to avoid any further controversy. Reynoso believes part of the problem is that he’s allowed boxers to bring in their own nutrition teams, separate from his own staff.

“From now on, I’ll only work with a team I can supervise 100%,” he said. “I’ve let the fighters I train bring in their own nutrition people and work teams, independent of my training structure. Now I’m going to seek guidance and build a solid nutrition team to do things better – and be more aligned with VADA to do things better.”

Reynoso defends the integrity of Oscar Valdez and Jaime Munguía

Reynoso also spoke up for the character of both Oscar Valdez and Jaime Munguía, saying they are disciplined, upstanding athletes whose doping issues were the result of mistakes, not deliberate cheating.

“Oscar Valdez is a stand-up guy, one of the most disciplined boxers out there,” Reynoso said. “There was a problem, it was resolved, and he went on to defend his title.”

He added: “Jaime Munguía is also a disciplined fighter having a great career. Then this small issue comes up… I can’t say I don’t want his team involved, because he feels comfortable working with them.”

In 2021, Valdez tested positive for phentermine ahead of his WBC super featherweight title defense. In Munguía’s case, both his A and B samples following his rematch with Surace came back positive for exogenous testosterone.

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