Nick Diaz Was Only Licensed To Fight Days Before UFC 183
Shocking news broke last night (February 3, 2015) that both Anderson Silva and Nick Diaz had failed UFC 183 drug tests. Since then, we have begun to learn more and more about the now controversial main event and the latest news is that Diaz almost didn’t even compete on fight night.
MMAFighting.com has reported that “The Stockton Bad Boy” was not licensed to fight “The Spider” on January 31, 2015 until the week of the fight. Diaz’s coach, Caesar Gracie, stated that the fighter was not able to provide a clean drug sample to the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC), which is needed for a license, until just days before the fight. NSAC executive Bob Bennett confirmed this news on Wednesday (February 4, 2015).
Not only did Diaz test positive for Marijuana metabolites in his post-fight drug test, but Bennett said the amount of marijuana metabolites in Diaz’s system was 300 ng/ml which is double the allowed limit. This is also the third time the Stockton native has popped for Marijuana in Nevada.
His previous failures are the reason Diaz had to provide a clean drug sample because after failing those tests he needed to re-apply for license. Gracie said the former Strikeforce champion was not able to do so until basically the last minute. Bennett said the results came in on January 28, 2015, which oddly was three days before the fight.
“It’s not an anomaly,” Bennett said. “We do get them at the last second. We’d prefer not to, because it creates problems. But don’t think we didn’t contact the promoters. We did contact the promoters. We said, ‘We need a clean bill of health from Nick or he isn’t fighting.'”
Gracie also said that Diaz failed multiple tests before compiling a clean one for the commission. The failed tests were not submitted, but it wouldn’t have mattered anyway, as Marijuana is not banned out-of-competition. The reason Diaz is facing punishment, is because the post-fight test is considered an in competition test, one in which Marijuana is banned.
The legendary trainer finds the whole situation odd, however. Gracie said Diaz passed the initial test for his license, did not smoke, then fought, and then somehow failed his post-fight test. Here’s what he thinks happened:
“My understanding was he passed the test, then he fought and then after he passed the test, he did not smoke,” Gracie said. “What we think happened is the exertion of the fight affected the test and that’s why he tested positive.”
However, the NSAC executive disagrees:
“It’s obvious once he provided us a negative one he started smoking again,” Bennett said.
Diaz was fined and suspended the first time he tested positive in 2007 and again in 2012. Gracie said he is not surprised, but not happy about the situation either:
“It’s not a shocker,” Gracie said. “His DNA is THC, let’s face it. No one is surprised by that. I’m disappointed by it. It’s just a distraction. It sucks. I don’t want any distractions. The guy is such a brilliant fighter. I’d rather be talking about how skilled he is.”
The Stockton native even has a medical Marijuana license in California according to his trainer. However, Gracie claims that nothing Diaz is doing is illegal in terms of the law. The drug is indeed prohibited by athletic competitions in-competition, however. ESPN’s Brett Okamoto also reported on Wednesday that Diaz did not disclose any medical Marijuana use in the last month:
One note I have confirmed on Diaz, he did not disclose any medical marijuana use “within last month” in his pre-fight NSAC questionnaire.
— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) February 4, 2015
Gracie went on and even explained why Diaz uses Marijuana:
“He doesn’t take pain medications,” Gracie said. “When he’s in pain after a workout, he likes to smoke marijuana. It calms him down and relieves the pain in his body. It’s his way to naturally deal with pain and other problems.”
While Diaz’s bust isn’t much of a shocker, Silva’s most definitely is. The former long-time middleweight champion tested positive in an out-of-competition test for two different performance enhancing drugs (PEDs). Both the fighters have been suspended until hearings with the commission take place.
Gracie said its “scary” that Silva used steroids, especially due to the size different between the two fighters. Diaz is a natural welterweight, and weighed about 190 pounds on fight night, while Silva most likely weighed over 200 pounds.
“Definitely one guy had an advantage he should not have had,” Gracie said. “He already enjoyed a weight advantage. We agreed to that. The other part we didn’t agree to.”
One huge question arising from these shocking tests, is how the legacy of Silva will be affected, as he is widely considered to be the greatest fighter to ever grace the canvas. Gracie believes it will definitely have a negative affect on the former champ:
“Well how many times did he not get caught?” Gracie said. “That question is gonna be there. Was that real natural Bruce Lee-like talent or was it enhanced by cheating? That’s the question people are gonna have and it tarnishes your legacy. It’s not a good thing to do that stuff.”
In closing, the legendary trainer said he thinks it’s well-known that Diaz smokes Marijuana, but it’s not as big of a problem as Silva’s test:
“I think the public knows Nick smokes marijuana,” he said. “He obviously wasn’t stoned during the fight.”
When it comes down to it, this news is unfortunate for everyone involved, the UFC, both fighters, their families, and the fans. How do you think it affects each man, and what is the right punishment?
