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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
Nick Diaz's attorney fired a response this week to the Nevada State Athletic Commission in regards to his failed drug test for marijuana metabolites at UFC 143, but while the arguments they will make may have some merit, Diaz may not be out of trouble anyway.
The defense is essentially that marijuana metabolites - which can linger in a marijuana user's system well after ingestion - are only proof that he took marijuana prior to his fight, not proof of when he took marijuana. That distinction, Diaz's attorney Ross Goodman believes, is key, as Diaz's prescription marijuana use isn't prohibited out of competition.
However, in arguing that Diaz halted his marijuana use eight days prior to the fight, it presents another issue: Diaz failed to disclose that to the commission on his pre-fight medical questionnaire.
The NSAC has responded to the claims, stating that Diaz either lied or failed to disclose his marijuana use to the commission on the pre-fight questionnaire, which asked if he had taken any prescription drugs in the two weeks leading into the fight. If he stopped eight days before the fight, he was in that window and did not let them know.
In a written statement to Yahoo! Sports' Kevin Iole, NSAC public information officer Jennifer M. Lopez gave the commission's stance on the rebuttal from Diaz's attorney:
Said Lopez, "Not only did Nick Diaz violate the law by testing positive for marijuana metabolites, but he also lied to the Commission on his Pre-Fight Questionnaire when he swore that he had not used any prescribed medications in two weeks before the fight.”
Penick's Analysis: Now this may be more of an issue for Diaz, especially as a second-time offender. Though he may be able to argue his way out of a really severe suspension and/or fine as a repeat offender, the failure to disclose ahead of time that he had taken that prescribed marijuana in that two-week period could be enough to get him six months in and of itself. Commissions have suspended fighters for taking other types of medication in that window and not disclosing it, so the fact that he failed to say it ahead of time works against him. They will see that as him intentionally deceiving them and attempting to pass the test for the fight as he had done before, and it isn't likely to sit well. This will all play out when Diaz's disciplinary hearing is held, and Diaz's lawyer will have to argue around Diaz's failure to disclose his use ahead of time.
[Nick Diaz art by Grant Gould (c) MMATorch.com]
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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