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Diaz Suspension upheld - 12 months 30% of his purse

3K views 39 replies 28 participants last post by  SM33 
#1 ·
http://www.mmamania.com/2012/5/21/3...-and-live-updates-today-may-21-from-las-vegas

Brian Hemminger here. The meeting is starting right now (12:05 p.m.)

12:05 p.m. - Herb Dean will be refereeing the main event between Herb Dean and Junior dos Santos.

12:15 p.m. - Robert Byrd will referee Paquiao-Bradley in boxing next month.

12:30 p.m. - Nick Diaz is in the building. Observers reporting that he looks "fidgety." No surprise there.

12:55 p.m. - They're going to be talking Therapeutic Use Exemptions now, and Chael Sonnen.

1:00 p.m. - NSAC is reviewing therapeutic use exemption protocols right now. From Kizer: "Heavy burden on fighter to prove they need TUE. Exemption doesn't give you carte blanche to use whatever drug you want or quantity."

1:05 p.m. - Kizer: "[TUE} does not allow you to test outside of normal ranges. It only allows for presence of synthetics."

1:06 p.m. - NSAC debating whether to include an endocrinologist/specialist help them with TRT cases.

1:10 p.m. - Commissioner Lundvall asking about athletes that have used TRT elsewhere and out of competition use

1:13 p.m. - Three athletes have been approved for TRT before with the NSAC (Dan Henderson, Shane Roller, Todd Duffee)

1:15 p.m. - Kizer: "You will be tested more often if TUE granted." Testing is at expense of the athlete. If they fail, it is a violation of the rules.

1:16 p.m. - Keith Kizer thinks we will see a rise of TRT exemption requests. Likens it to "the new Viagara" as doctors push it in general population.

1:18 p.m. - Doctor on the line says there's no way to know if low testosterone is due to prior steroid use.

1:23 p.m. - Ok, time for Chael Sonnen and his manager/attorney applying for his TUE

1:28 p.m. - NSAC Dr. says Chael's initial diagnosis was "inaccurate." Says the fault wasn't with Mr. Sonnen but that it was with the physician.

1:30 p.m. - Dr. Timothy Trainor says Chael has secondary hypogonadism, not primary. He blames the doctor for that. Says his problem's still legit though

1:32 p.m. - Doctor says Chael needs to be more vigilant and take his testosterone as prescribed. It would benefit everyone involved that he be tested the morning after the fight to see where his testosterone levels are which would avoid having someone take testosterone right before the fight to get a boost.

1:37 p.m. - Chael says in 2008 he went in for a physical and wasn't feeling good. Got sick three time a month his whole life and was always an athlete in situations where he was subjected to weigh-ins. Attributed it to lack of sleep and lack of food. He mentioned it to the doctor and the doctor took blood work and said he had no testosterone.

1:39 p.m.- Chael: "I administer two times a week, every Sunday and Thursday. It's self-injected intermusculatory and he considers it to be a prescription."

1:40 p.m. - Commissioner brings up Chael's 2008, 2009 and 2010 form and asks why he had nothing on there about his marking about using testosterone. Chael says the manager at the time alleged that he didn't have to talk about it. He says it's a lot clearer now on how to disclose taking it. He wasn't eager to discuss his medical background with anybody before but he followed the rules as he understood them before and won't follow them that way again.

1:47 p.m. - Chael's manager says he was licensed after disclosing to Texas and Illinois about his TRT treatment.

1:52 p.m. - Keith Kizer reiterates he has never had any conversation with Sonnen's manager about TRT use.

1:54 p.m. - Kizer bringing up all the times in the past that Sonnen has lied in the past and his long history of lying.

1:56 p.m. - The commission is deliberating whether Sonnen will be approved.

2:00 p.m. - Chael under oath says he has never taken any anabolic steroid

2:02 p.m. - They grant Sonnen an exemption with conditions being imposed on injections prior to the event and he will be tested at his expense the day after the fight in the morning.

2:02 p.m. - They also ask if Chael will help them as an adviser on TRT issues since he's had so much experience with them.

2:03 p.m. - 5 minute break and then it's Nick Diaz time.

2:13 p.m. - We're back and it's Nick Diaz time! The commissioner asks if "Dioz" is the correct pronunciation and Nick corrects him...thank god.

2:20 p.m. - Legal mumbo jumbo out of the way, time to get started.

2:28 p.m. - Eccles: We'll give testimony that WADA tests for the same metabolite, at same threshold. That's evidence for Diaz's doping violation.

2:34 p.m. - Diaz's attorney saying that commission has a test for marijuana metabolites, but they have no evidence that he was under the influence while fighting. They need to decide whether having metabolites in the system are the same thing as competing while under the influence.

2:40 p.m. - Chairperson brings up that all banned substances are banned both in and out of competition according Nevada statutes.

2:43 p.m. - That above statement was incorrect, they read the rules wrong.

2:45 p.m. - Goodman explains there is an actual "card" California medical marijuana patients can have, but it's voluntary. Nick just has a doctor's note.

2:50 p.m. - Diaz's attorney dealing with whether or not Diaz lied on the pre-fight questionairre. He says Diaz didn't think his marijuana use was a prescription or that his condition was something serious enough to be listed on the questionairre.

2:55 p.m. - Diaz's position is that he was compliant with California law.

2:58 p.m. - Nick Diaz is being sworn in right now. This should be good.

2:59 p.m. - Nick says he started using marijuana when he got home. He admits that he smokes while training leading up to the fight. He admits he had stopped eight days prior to competition. He does not keep a chart or log. He says he has permission from a physician to use marijuana but they didn't recommend a specific dosage.

3:02 p.m. - Nick says he has a lot of friends with physician statements and there are many people who work at cannibus dispensories, "everybody knows everybody" and friends at the cannibus dispensories help him out. He uses whatever is more convenient, friends or from the dispensory itself.

3:04 p.m. - Nick says he was diagnosed with ADHD in second grade. Was prescribed Ritalin among others.

3:05 p.m. - Diaz admits he was recommended to go to his current physician who gave him a physician statement through friends who had done the same.

3:10 p.m. - Diaz says he had a hard time moving around different schools as a kid.

3:13 p.m. - Nick talking about childhood, early weed use being "recreational" but looking back thinks it was therapeutic.

3:20 p.m. - Nick was before NSAC 5 years ago after first popped for weed and told NSAC he would "never do it again." They aren't happy he lied to them back then.

3:22 p.m. - Nick says with all due respect, he said he would not test positive again and that's what he meant.

3:23 p.m. - Nick says he was never under the understanding that he could apply for an exemption for marijuana.

3:27 p.m. - Diaz's lawyer bring up again that the test for the metabolyte is not correct, they should be testing for actual marijuana or THC.

3:30 p.m. - Diaz's lawyer suggests blood tests for checking THC levels and avoid this whole process for all medical marijuana users. Diaz smoked in California and then came to Nevada. Never smoked in Nevada.

3:40 p.m. - They are debating right now whether ADHD is a serious medical condition and worthy of putting on the questionairre.

3:44 p.m. - Commission brings up that Nick Diaz had disclosed about his marijuana use in the past in California.

3:47 p.m. - Diaz says if he doesn't use marijuana, he's more restless, overly energetic, sleepless and he has issues with his appetite.

3:49 p.m. - Haha, commission asking about "the munchies" from weed.

3:50 p.m. - Commission asks if Nick can absorb more strikes if on marijuana. He says no, it allows him to focus better. He smokes before/during training and sparring.

3:52 p.m. - Nick says he doesn't believe he has a serious medical condition, commission is saying he's said that he had one before.

4:00 p.m. - Commission grilling Diaz about what changed in California where he checked "yes" for marijuana but didn't check it for the three Nevada forms.

4:02 p.m. - Nick says only things like a broken leg or something that would prevent him from fighting should count as a serious medical condition.

4:04 p.m. - Dr. Sample being brought on the line as a specialist. He discusses his qualifications and what constitutes "in competition" testing.

4:12 p.m. - Commission will likely have to move rooms because they have to leave at 1:30 p.m. Pacific time. Ughhhhh.

4:14 p.m. The doctor on the line says that they use urine testing for marijuana, won't commit as to whether it actually tests if you are currently being intoxicated.

4:15 p.m. - Oh boy, they're moving rooms now. Hearing is not over, but stream is likely going to be interrupted briefly.

4:25 p.m. - They're back to business in the new room.

4:27 p.m. - Keith Kizer going over all of Nick's history with Nevada. He says Nick may have tried to dilute his sample after the Condit fight. Said only after threat of no pay did Diaz provide a sample.

4:32 p.m. - Diaz's lawyer saying that Nick had to go five round and "chased Carlos Condit around" thus expending more energy and could have affected his ability to provide a sample. Kizer mentions that Condit had no problem providing a sample immediately after the fight.

4:34 p.m. - Diaz's team bringing in a guy with a PHD in organic chemistry from Yale who's an expert on drug laboratories and toxicology.

4:39 p.m. - Doctor testifies that marijuana is fat soluble and can easily stay up to 30 days in your body and test positive for marijuana metabolyte. There was no test for marijuana, the parent drug. He says you can test for the parent drug rather than the metabolyte. They test for metabolyte because it stays there for a long time while the parent drug is harder to detect and lasts for a shorter period of time.

4:41 p.m. - Doctor says until marijuana was legalized in some form, there was never some question of whether it was legal to use it. If you tested positive for metabolyte, that was end of discussion but that is an outdated form of testing procedure now.

4:43 p.m. - Doctor says the active ingredient in marijuana is THC and that stays present in the blood for a number of hours afterwards and depends on the person using, the frequency of use. If you smoke marijuana every day multiple times, the ingredient can be detected in the blood for longer periods of time.

4:45 p.m. - Doctor says the active effect of THC is felt for a few hours afterwards. Doctor says according to the testimony of Nick Diaz, it is his conclusion that Diaz was not under the influence of THC at the time of the fight, although that was not what was tested for.

4:46 p.m. - Doctor says he's surprised the level of metabolyte was not higher in Diaz's system for after stopping use for eight days.

4:49 p.m. - They are now discussing Diaz's weight cut.

4:54 p.m. - Diaz says he was under the perception that marijuana was a prescription drug when he was in California when he posted it under the questionaire.

4:55 p.m. - Closing arguments now

5:00 p.m. - Diaz's lawyer taking the commission to task about their procedures, questionaires and "monday morning quarterbacking"

5:05 p.m. - Commission deliberating now.

5:19 p.m. - Diaz suspended for 12 months, loses 30% of his fight purse and his bonus.

That's a wrap folks. Seems like they could have come to that conclusion in about 20 minutes instead of 3 hours but whatevs.
 
#3 ·
"Herb Dean will be refereeing the main event between Herb Dean and Junior dos Santos." Poor Herb.

The suspension sounds fair, Diaz is a repeat offender and by now should be able to comprehend that having weed in his system will lead to failed tests and suspensions. I don't agree for a second that it is a performance enhancer, but it is a banned one and Nick knew it.
 
#24 · (Edited)
Ridiculous.

Nick knows better and he knows what will get him suspended. So it is on him.

But that aside, when we are talking straight laws and regulations...it is ridiculous that smoking a doober is equivalent to taking anabolic steroids or TRT.

1 is a harmless "drug" that is legal in many states. A "drug" that many people think makes people lazy, stupid, and tired. It is less addictive and less harmless than Caffeine or Nicotine.

The others are drugs to directly help muscle growth, recover time, and training in general.

Pretty ******* stupid if you ask me.

A guy like Overeem can completely avoid a test. Then the very next test he takes he his testosterone levels are caught high....and he gets 9 months. While Diaz gets a year because he was caught with weed in his system years ago....and now once again.

Rules are the rules. So whatever. It just shows how screwed up society is now a days. We regulate and punish the wrong things.

The whole war on marijuana was proven to be such a propaganda filled myth. So sad that the U.S. still treats it like such a crime. Yet alcohol isn't only legal...but it is culturally excepted everywhere. The government urges citizens to go get falling down loaded at a bar and make bad decisions. But smoking a joint in the comfort of your own home is such a sin.
 
#8 ·
Silva fans are gotten to, it's not Chael's fault his balls don't work.

As for Diaz, what'd you expect? He's a repeat offender and tried to throw every fancy loop hole in the book at them.

Don't care about the judges for Mir/dos Santos or Cain/Bigfoot. The only fight on the main card that may go the distance is Miocic/Del Rosario. I just hope Herb steps in before Junior takes Mir's life.
 
#13 ·
Kind of funny how they can suspend someone for taking a drug that has been approved by a doctor which makes it LEGAL, particularly a drug that has no proven performance enhancing properties (unless watching TV in a spaced out state while eating Doritos is performance enhancing).

The bottom line is the commission makes the rules and everyone knows them before signing for a fight. An adult would either comply or take ownership for non compliance. Nick needs to grow up although that’s not news. I just want to see him fight.

As for TRT it’s a slippery slope, everyone has a different testosterone level, some have more than others naturally. I don’t want to go into biochemistry and physical chemistry but having a higher level is a benefit for a multitude of reasons. People elevate their mineral intake, vitamin intake, people even manipulate their hematocrit (red blood cell count) through natural and illegal means.

By artificially elevating your testosterone level legally you are not cheating but this slippery slope begs the question, where do you stop? If a stem cell therapy could give you an 84” reach or make every LHW fighter 6’4” of allow everyone to have a chin like Roy Nelson would this be ethical?
 
#20 ·
Overeem is a first time offender, Diaz is a multiple time offender.

And I don't think Nick's gonna have too many "exciting" fights in the UFC welterweight division which is loaded top to bottom with wrestlers. Besides, didn't he retire after Condit beat him?
 
#19 ·
I understand having to get it cleared by the commission to use prescribed PEDs ie TRT, but what evidence do they have that allows weed to be classed as a PED? Its BS if you ask me. He needs it, the doctors says he needs it and its not even a PED, so there shouldn't even be a discussion about it.
 
#23 ·
Thats a bummer, Diaz is fun as hell to watch and now he is going to be out for a year. On the flip side of that though, he knew the rules (regarless of how arbitrary they may be) and he broke them. This is his fault, hopefully he takes his twelve months, figures out an appropriate time to stop smoking prior to his fights and then falls right back into contention.
 
#26 ·
Diaz is fully guilty and yes for sure its worse because of his previous positive test against Gomi. The guy is a fool and should be held reprehensible for disrespecting MMA, a fine thats it.

Morally I think Diaz has suffered great injustice with a year ban. Most people here on the forum have at least once used pot, I did occasionally when I was younger.
For me it is nothing compared to steroids especially stanozol.

Sports athletes who test positive for social drugs should be fined big in proportion to what they earn for a fight.
Sports athletes who test positive for PED's should incur big fines and year long bans.
Morally for me without legal systems some social drugs should be on the same level with prescription TRT.
 
#28 · (Edited)
Heh, from the Cesar Gracie twitter words like some people are saying around here:



https://twitter.com/#!/CesarGracieBJJ/status/204659306233212929
Ceasar really couldn't of said it any better.

Driving drunk is a HUGE fine these days and really looked down upon compared to back in the day when Police would pull you over and just offer you a ride safely home.

Driving intoxicated and running into things could potentially cost someone their life. Nick smoking weed hurts no one, and he smoked it legally. Seems like any logic is thrown out the window when setting and enforcing these rules.

I understand that being a 2nd time offender is what is getting him a year. I just think it is ridiculous and they need to look into changing the rules and laws....it is 2012.

Not saying Nick didn't know the consequences. He has always smoked weed and just flushed it out each time. He didn't do a good enough job this time and it cost him. You play with fire you eventually get burned I guess you would say.
 
#29 ·
They are debating right now whether ADHD is a serious medical condition and worthy of putting on the questionairre.
ARE YOU ******* KIDDING ME?!

I don't know whether to laugh or cry right now. And if I chose to cry I wouldn't know if I should cry with laughter, sadness or disbelief.
 
#31 · (Edited)
Who cares if it's a second time offence, ime a massive fan of Overeem but he ducked a test and then gets caught on one 4 monthes later and gets 9 monthes. This is crazy, Bj penn smokes weed, Joe rogan is a proper stoner and publicy admits it all over his twitter, so calling diaz an idiot on here and stupid then u would probs be calling alot of other fighters that too. If fighters choose to smoke Weed in there home in-between fight with a bevie then that's there choice, it's doesn't enhance there game or anything so why it's even a problem
Baffles me. TRT is alot worse and there are alot of fighters trying this crap out now, and the reason they need it is because half of them were bad Steroid users back in the younger days.
 
#38 ·
Jones is a public figure working for the UFC and doing something that jeopardises the company which he has is worthy of a suspension or even your contract terminated, Its happened many many times before. Not that this has anything to do with the commission though.
 
#36 ·
Diaz's suspension is up in February, one year after he fought, Overeem will be cleared in December, one year after he fought. Both basically got the same punishment while one is a two time offender and Overeem was lucky Dana didn't cut him.

As for Sonnen was out from August of 2010 to October of 2011, it's pretty clear the athletic commissions think PED's are more important than weed which is the same way I feel.
 
#35 ·
Diaz is a Thug because of the way he talks and because he takes NO shit.

Jones is a great man and a great Christian, yet he gets behind the wheel while intoxicated. TOTALS his car. If there had been someone standing near that pole he hit...they would be dead.

So who is the "thug" here? Who is the one out doing worse things at focking 5 AM?

Diaz is out riding his mountain bike and smoking a joint in the woods. Jones is out at 5 AM trying to drive his fancy car while being at least legally drunk.

I'd rather have Nick in my community.
 
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