Nick Diaz and the aftermath of the " Death Sentence"

Nick Diaz and the aftermath of the "Death Sentence"

 

By: Dylan Smith

 

  A week after the Nevada State Athletic Commission handed down an extremely controversial 5 year ban and a hefty $165,000 fine to UFC fighter Nick Diaz, there has been immediate backlash against the commission from not only fans, but from fighters such as women's bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey who believes marijuana shouldn't even be tested for, and former Olympic wrestler and now #1 flyweight contender Henry Cejudo vowing not to fight in Las Vegas until Diaz' suspension has been lifted. MMA personality Joe Rogan also went on record showing his support, and even the pound-for-pound best boxer in the world Floyd Mayweather commented on the situation, saying "Let the man smoke weed and enjoy his life". There was also a petition created for the Obama administration to lift the ban from Diaz that needs 100,000 signatures and as of today has over 53,000. You can support Diaz and sign the petition here https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/lift-nsac-ban-mma-fighter-nick-diaz . 

 

This was not the first time Diaz has tested positive for marijuana in his career. He also tested positive in 2007 fighting under the PRIDE banner when he failed his pre fight drug test which caused his submission win over Takanori Gomi to be changed to a no contest along with a 6 month suspension and a 20% fine from his purse earned in the fight. He tested positive again for marijuana metabolites in 2011, after his fight for the interim welterweight championship against Carlos Condit where he was defeated by decision which the commission handed down a 1 year suspension and a 30% fine of his fight purse. 

 

There was little question with those two instances that Diaz was indeed guilty of having the banned substance in his system. Although, following his 2011 test he was able to prove that he owned a medical marijuana license in his home state of California and it was perfectly legal for him to use the drug for medicinal purposes. Regardless, the commission deemed his license insufficient and denied him an exemption, saying he lied in the pre fight questionnaire when he denied the use of any recreational drugs.

 

There are a few reasons there is so much controversy surrounding what has been dubbed the "death sentence" the commission gave Diaz, but one of the main points of argument is the two WADA (World Anti Doping Agency) tests that Diaz passed then later ultimately tested above the threshold when tested by the commission. During the hearing the commission was not willing to acknowledge the two tests that Diaz had passed and based their decision off of the test done by them. Despite great legal representation by Diaz in the form of lawyers and attorneys proving that the commission had a major lack of evidence and any punishment besides the minimal would be unjust, the NSAC ruled that Diaz was indeed guilty and would receive the maximum punishment for his third offense.

 

Watch this video and hear from the man himself on his thoughts of the hearing, the crooks that are the NSAC board members, and what he plans to do in the future. 

(Video courtesy of MMAjunkie.com)