Dominican super lightweight fighter Alberto Puello has now definitively been removed from his status as super lightweight champion following the WBA’s decision to suspend him until October. Puello failed a vital drug test weeks before he was supposed to defend his WBA title against Rolly Romero, resulting in him being replaced by Ismael Barroso.

Prior to this decision, Alberto Puello (21-0, 10 KO’s) had still been the champion in-recess which afforded him the opportunity to resolve the matter of his failed drug test. The Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) suspended him around a week prior to the fight due to him testing positive by VADA for the banned substance of clomiphene, preventing him from competing on May 13th against Rolly Romero (15-1, 13 KO’s).

During Puello’s suspension by the NSAC, Rolly Romero won controversially on May 13th against the #1 WBA super lightweight contender Ismael Barroso (24-4-2, 22 KO’s) to win the WBA super lightweight world title that had been relinquished by Puello.

The WBA’s decision to suspend him will now remove Alberto Puello from their rankings and his status as champion in-recess. That status would have given him a chance to challenge the reigning WBA champion once his drug issues were settled, but with the WBA’s decision Puello will now be forced to work his way back to the top once he sees out his suspension, or he can petition the WBA to get back into the rankings when his suspension ends. The latter option, however, does not guarantee him a place within the rankings as the WBA decides these matters on a case-by-case basis and can reject Puello’s petition.

The WBA has stated that the suspension will last until October 5th, but it is yet unknown for how long NSAC’s own suspension will be upheld. Though not too crippling for his career, NSAC’s suspension does prevent Ismael Barroso from fighting in the state of Nevada for as long as the Nevada State Athletic Commission’s suspension is upheld.