Marcos Maidana
The Texas Boxing Commission is reportedly investigating claims that Marcos Maidana cheated during his upset victory over Adrien Broner on Saturday. Wikipedia Commons

The Texas Boxing Commission is reportedly investigating claims that boxer Marcos Maidana cheated during his upset victory over Adrien Broner last Saturday.

Maidana scored a surprise win over Broner, earning a unanimous decision and handing “The Problem” his first-ever loss in the process. However, a video in which the new WBA welterweight champion appears to ingest a pill has boxing authorities questioning the legitimacy of his victory, TMZ reports.

In a video taken in the midst of the match, someone in Maidana’s corner appears to place a pill on a piece of cloth before pushing it toward the boxer’s mouth -- an action that would constitute cheating. For professional boxers, the intake of any foreign substance is strictly regulated. As TMZ notes, even a fighter’s water supply must be tested for alterations before he is allowed to ingest it during a fight. If Maidana ingested a pill of some sort during the fight, the possibility of cheating could force him to vacate his newly won title.

TMZ claims that Broner is “confident the investigation will prove Maidana cheated.” However, in an interview with FightHype.com, Alex Ariza, Maidana’s strength and conditioning coach, had a simple explanation for the so-called “pill.”

"Look, they're just dental cotton rolls," Ariza reportedly told the website. "They're not as clumsy as gauze pads. When I say clumsy, I mean when you pull them out, they don't unravel. They stay tight. Plus, when there are cuts inside the mouth, you don't want to use adrenaline or anything like that because those are topical solutions; if [Maidana] swallows it, he'll get a stomach ache or worse.”

Ariza added, according to FightHype.com: "You know, it's just what the dentist uses and what he puts inside your mouth when he's stopping bleeding. He doesn't put anything on it; he just uses those things. So there's your f---ing smoking gun; those are your mystery pills."

The Texas Boxing Commission’s investigation into the cheating allegations will reportedly conclude by Thursday, TMZ reports.