LAS VEGAS (AP) – Manny Pacquiao could face disciplinary action from Nevada boxing officials for failing to disclose a shoulder injury before his fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr.
Nevada Athletic Commission chairman Francisco Aguilar said Monday that the state attorney general’s office will look at why Pacquiao checked “no’’ a day before the fight on a commission questionnaire asking if he had a shoulder injury.
“We will gather all the facts and follow the circumstances,’’ Aguilar said. “At some point we will have some discussion. As a licensee of the commission you want to make sure fighters are giving you up-to-date information.’’
Pacquiao could face a possible fine or suspension for not answering the question accurately on a form he filled out just before Friday’s weigh-in. He would go on to lose a unanimous decision to Mayweather in the richest fight ever.
Meanwhile, orthopedic surgeon Dr. Neal ElAttrache told ESPN.com that Pacquiao will undergo surgery later this week to repair a “significant tear’’ in his rotator cuff. ElAttrache examined Pacquiao on Monday at his Kerlan Jobe Orthopedics office in Los Angeles.
Pacquiao’s promoter put out a statement on behalf of the fighter late Monday afternoon saying that the injury was disclosed to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, which approved the use of an anti-inflammatory shot for the fight. But USADA was only a third party to the fight, charged only with testing the fighters for banned substances in training and the night of the bout.
“We had no medical information, no MRIs, no documents,’’ said Travis Tygart, who heads the USADA. “It was not an anti-doping issue. The real question is why his camp checked `no’ on the disclosure. Either they made a terrible mistake to not follow the rules or they were trying not to give information to the other side. I’m not sure there’s a middle ground.’’
Tygart said his agency, which was hired by promoters to oversee drug testing for the bout, was contacted April 7 asking about the use of various substances and whether they were allowed under anti-doping rules. He said there was another call 10 days later asking about using a different substance, again for what the USADA was told was an unspecified shoulder problem.