Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. Temporarily Suspended by Nevada Commission

Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. has been temporarily suspended today by the Nevada State Athletic Commission pending a full hearing into his positive drug test last month. 

The move is a procedural one, handed down during the NSAC's monthly meeting, and comes as no surprise.

"Mr. Chavez's license is suspended, but there is no finding of fact on the merits of the case," NSAC executive director Keith Kizer told ESPN, according to Dan Rafael.

"He had a license to fight in Nevada and we suspended it pending a hearing."

Chavez Jr. tested positive for marijuana after losing a unanimous decision to Sergio Martinez last month in Las Vegas. He has since claimed the result was caused by prescription eye drops and not recreational usage of the drug.

He will face a full hearing before the commission as early as the end of this month. At the hearing, both Chavez and the Attorney General of Nevada will present their cases.

He will certainly face a heavy fine and a possible suspension of up to one year if found guilty.

This is largely due to the fact that Chavez failed a drug test once before in Nevada, using the drug Furosemide, a known diuretic used to drop weight or mask steroids.

For his part, Kizer is expecting Chavez to face a minimum suspension of six months, but would not be surprised if he got a full year.

"I can't imagine the suspension will be any less than six months," Kizer said. "Best case for Mr. Chavez is six months, worse case is 12 months."

Kizer further explained that while the normal suspension for a marijuana related offense is six months, since it's his second failed test, he could face the stiffer year-long penalty.

If Chavez is indeed suspended, he will be prohibited from fighting anywhere in the United States. Under the law, a suspension issued by an athletic commission in one state must be honored by all the others.