Former UFC and Pride fighter Nick Diaz is a lot of things. He’s impulsive, arrogant, narcissistic, and probably at least a little bit insane. He once started a fight with Joe Riggs in the hospital after their bout at UFC 57. He reportedly threw a shoe at Diego Sanchez while taunting him in the locker room before their fight. In short, Nick Diaz is a sociopath with a black belt in jiu-jitsu, and that’s the worst kind of sociopath.
What Nick Diaz is not, however, is a cheater. So why is he being treated like one?
As many mixed martial arts fans know, after his submission victory over Takanori Gomi in February Diaz tested positive for marijuana. Really positive. According to the Nevada State Athletic Commission, the amount of THC in Diaz’s system was more than seventeen times the normal level. That’s like Willie Nelson and Method Man put together (come to think of it, why haven’t those two starred in an irreverent comedy about unlikely friends by now?)
As a result of his positive test, Diaz’s win was changed to a no-contest and he was given a six-month suspension by the Commission, as well as a fine. The fine is understandable, and even the suspension. Diaz broke a rule. He tested positive for an illegal substance. But what about the no-contest, which erases his grueling and impressive victory over one of the world’s top lightweights?
Judging by the way the same Commission – as well as the much more stringent California Commission – has responded to recent events, it seems Diaz would have been better off if he had tested positive for steroids. He’d have received a fine and a longer suspension, but his win would have stayed on the books.