Mikaela Mayer is raising alarms about the prevalence of cheating in boxing, criticizing authorities for making it “very easy to cheat” in the sport.

The former super-featherweight champion is set to challenge Britain’s Sandy Ryan for a world title on Friday night at Madison Square Garden in New York. Meanwhile, in Atlanta, her former rival Alycia Baumgardner is making her comeback against Delfine Persoon, 14 months after failing a drugs test.

Baumgardner tested positive for two banned steroids ahead of her title defense against Christina Linardatou in July 2023 and faced provisional suspension. However, she was not stripped of her titles, as the WBC concluded after an investigation that she was “not guilty of intentional ingestion or consumption of a banned substance.” This decision has left Mayer questioning the integrity of the process.

Mayer, who suffered a controversial split decision loss to Baumgardner in October 2022, feels that her rival has been let back into the sport too easily. She expressed her frustration in an interview with Mail Sport, stating that there has been a lack of drug testing leading up to her own fight with Ryan.

“I haven’t been tested for this fight. No one’s come to test me,” Mayer said. “We tried to get the drug testing done, but I don’t know what happened. I wasn’t tested with Baumgardner either.”

Reflecting on Baumgardner’s situation, Mayer noted, “When you test positive for something, you need to go through due process. You don’t just get to say, ‘Oh, I didn’t know.’ It seemed like no one forced her to provide any substantial explanation other than, ‘I don’t know.’ She got a slap on the wrist with an easy one-year suspension, which is virtually nothing. This process has disrupted the division significantly.”

Mayer highlighted that Baumgardner is not the only fighter to face scrutiny over drug tests; Conor Benn’s highly anticipated match with Chris Eubank Jr. was canceled just days before it was scheduled after he failed multiple tests, and Ryan Garcia’s victory over Devin Haney was overturned to a no-contest following a positive test.

Expressing her frustration with inconsistent sanctions for fighters who fail drug tests, Mayer emphasized the need for a more unified approach. “There’s got to be something put in place across the board. Everyone is being handled differently, and it makes it very easy to cheat.”

Mayer is currently focused on her upcoming fight against Ryan, who holds the WBO welterweight title and recently delivered an impressive performance against Terri Harper. Mayer recognizes Ryan as a formidable opponent, given their history in the amateurs.

While a rematch with Baumgardner seems likely if she wins, Mayer remains conflicted. “I don’t necessarily know if she deserves the rematch,” she stated. “But the other side of me wants to fight her to prove a point. We’ll see. Right now, I’m concentrating on the girls at welterweight.”

Should she secure a victory over Ryan, Mayer intends to target a rematch with Natasha Jonas, who won their last encounter by a split decision in January. Mayer is determined to establish herself in the welterweight division and face top contenders, stating, “I’m going after the best in this division, and right now that’s Sandy, Lauren Price, and Natasha Jonas