The ex-trainer of former three-division world champion boxer "Sugar" Shane Mosley of Pomona says in a sworn declaration filed in federal court Friday that Mosley was fully aware he was using performance-enhancing drugs as he prepared for his victorious 2003 rematch against Oscar De La Hoya.
Supporting the previous account of Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative (BALCO) founder Victor Conte, who is being sued for defamation by Mosley in U.S. District Court in San Francisco, trainer Derryl Hudson said Mosley relied on designer steroids "the cream" and "the clear," along with the oxygen-boosting drug EPO after meeting Conte at BALCO headquarters in Burlingame, Calif., on July 26, 2003.
"I know that Mr. Mosley was aware that the performance-enhancing drugs provided to him by Mr. Conte were banned drugs because I discussed that fact with Mr. Mosley both during and after our visit to BALCO," Hudson wrote in a declaration that was used in Conte's motion to have the lawsuit dismissed. "Mr. Mosley admitted to me that he knew the drugs provided to him by Mr. Conte were illegal performance-enhancing drugs.
"It was entirely Mr. Mosley's decision to use the banned drugs. I never recommended to Mr. Mosley that he take banned performance-enhancing drugs, nor did I 'push' drugs on him in any way."
Hudson is suing Mosley, 36, for defamation in federal court in Los Angeles after the boxer told media outlets, including The Times, that he didn't know he was taking banned drugs from BALCO. Mosley told The Times last year that Hudson convinced him to take stomach injections because they were "icing on the cake" to his typically rigorous conditioning program.
In response to Hudson's declaration, Mosley's attorney, Judd Burstein, said he was "incredulous" that the trainer has sued Mosley for suggesting Hudson pushed the boxer to use steroids yet admits in the sworn statement that performance-enhancing drugs were discussed at the BALCO meeting without an explanation of why Mosley visited Conte.
"This is just a clear lie by someone who was fired by Shane for incompetence, and was subsequently fired by two other fighters, Winky Wright and Jeff Lacy," Burstein said. "The notion of Shane saying, 'Let's go meet someone to do something illegal,' is outlandish to anyone who knows Shane.
"I'm looking forward to deposing Mr. Hudson. I'm loaded for bear."
