Heavyweight contender Monte Barrett has come from his corner swinging over allegations he failed a drugs test following his last fight against David Tua. Last night 3 News revealed that Barrett had failed a drug test after the August 13 fight, and had tested positive to a banned stimulant; a fight which Tua lost sending him spiralling out of heavyweight contention.

"Tua's whole career has been excuses. He has never lived up to his potential that New Zealand thought he would be," he told Boxing Insider.

Barrett denies the claims saying the whole thing is just another ploy by a "broke" Tua. It’s being reported that the test was overseen by the Wellington based ESR Forensics Toxicologist Kenepuru Science Centre and tested at the Australian Sports Drug Testing Laboratory.

"If I would have failed a (urine) test, they would have never let me leave out of New Zealand with those belts. I've never been a cheater," says Barrett. "I bust my butt. I sparred 125 rounds; I ran countless miles; I trained countless hours; I put so much work in," Barrett says of the fight in question. "I busted Tua's butt fair and square: that's the bottom line. He never was world champion. He never really fought the fight that put him over the top.

"If he wants me to, I'll move to New Zealand, train there for the whole time, and he can watch me eat, watch me train, watch the supplements I take, and I'm still gonna bust him down," says the angry Barrett. "Tua is an emotional queen. He's the Queen of New Zealand."