Nick Diaz: Frustrating Fighter

Had things happened differently, Nick Diaz would forever be part of MMA history. Regardless of how his career transpired after February, 2007 he should have been remembered as part of one of the greatest fights ever. His PRIDE 33 matchup against Takanori Gomi should have created a legacy like the first Forrest Griffin/Stephan Bonnar bout, only it was better. It was a mixed martial arts version of Gatti/Ward or Castillo/Corrales 1. It should have been the biggest victory of Diaz’s career and the centerpiece of his highlight reel.

Unfortunately, Diaz’s moment of glory lasted only about six weeks. On April 10^th, the Nevada Athletic Commission announced that he’d failed a drug test. Diaz had tested positive for marijuana, and his THC level was off the charts. The Nevada Athletic Commission considers a THC level over 50 a positive result for marijuana usage. Nick Diaz’s THC level was an astounding 175 and that led NSAC Chairman Dr. Tony Alamo to speculate that in this situation marijuana was a performance enhancing drug. The rationale was that during the fight Diaz was “feeling no pain�—literally. Diaz was fined, suspended and the result of his almost certain “fight of the year� winner with Gomi changed to a “no decision�.

Diaz had singlehandedly removed the luster from a classic bout. Following an action packed and very close first round Gomi took control in the second. Gomi had opened a cut on Diaz’s face and it was bleeding a gusher. On several occasions Gomi implored the referee to stop the fight, or at least check on the cut due to the excessive blood flow. With the ref showing no signs of stopping the fight and Diaz hanging tough, Gomi took the fight to the ground and in a matter of seconds found himself forced to tap out to a gogoplata. Looking at the fight now, the action is the same but there’s something absent from it on a spiritual level. Had Diaz not tested positive and the result stood it would have become a classic fight. As it turned out, it became more of a case study demonstrating just how much pain a stoned mixed martial artist can withstand.

Nick Diaz is by most accounts a decent guy and has shown flashes of brilliance in the ring. A product of a single parent household, Diaz has suggested that the absence of a father made his upbringing difficult. It didn’t impair his development as a fighter, as he has not only earned a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu but is an accomplished boxer who’s fought (and won) a professional fight. Despite his mastery of both standup and ground fighting, Diaz’s cardio conditioning is arguably his most formidable weapon. He credits competitive swimming for building the foundation of his cardio strength and today competes in triathlons as part of his training to maintain that advantage. 

While Diaz might not be a bad person, he’s definitely someone who attracts trouble. Instead of learning a lesson from the experience of his positive drug test, he became a more outspoken advocate of marijuana use. While the relative risk pot smoking is debatable and beyond the purview of this article one thing is certain—fighters are prohibited from its use. Sadly, it appears that Diaz places a greater value on his recreational drug use than his legacy as a professional prizefighter. He’s gone so far as to obtain a prescription for medical marijuana in California, purportedly to treat “Attention Deficit Disorder�. 

That prescription would produce another stumbling block in Diaz’s career. Scheduled to fight on a March 29^th Strikeforce/EliteXC show, he was refused medical clearance by the California State Athletic Commission due to his “pot prescription� to treat “ADD�. Accusations and recriminations went back and forth between Diaz, the CSAC and EliteXC President Gary Shaw who backed his fighter so strongly that he even called a press conference to reiterate that. Diaz insists that he would have tested negative for THC, but was assumed to be guilty without due cause. The CSAC counters that it wasn’t the fact that he had a valid prescription for marijuana but rather Diaz’s submission of his medical information right before the deadline which left no time for them to follow up with his doctor. 

This fiasco was the latest incident in a short but tumultuous EliteXC career. Diaz won his first fight in the promotion and was awarded a shot at the vacant 160 pound title where he faced KJ Noons. In that fight Diaz lost via stoppage due to several cuts on his face in what otherwise was an evenly contested bout. Following the Noons fight Diaz gave a tour de force performance of bad sportsmanship, “flipping off� both the crowd and the ringside physician before leaving the arena to a cascade of boos. Gary Shaw was nonplussed by the display, suggesting that it was the inevitable result of Diaz’s competitive drive and disappointment with the outcome. To date, Shaw has shown no wavering in his support of the enigmatic fighter.

Diaz’s name was in the news again this week with his “on again, off again� presence on the DREAM.3 event from Tokyo. DREAM announced Diaz’s participation early this week, which came as a surprise to his American contract holder EliteXC. Since Elite had plans to use him on a card within the next couple of months, they vetoed Diaz’s participation. After some negotiation between the two promotions, EliteXC relented and allowed Diaz to fight as planned. At that point it was Diaz who said the fight was off, as he “broke training� after the fight initially fell throw and didn’t think he could make weight for the event. While there are no concrete details, Diaz’s trainer Cesar Gracie has apparently reassured him that making weight wouldn’t be problematic. For the moment at least, Diaz is now scheduled to fight Inoue Katsuya at DREAM.3 though based on the events of the previous week that could change before bell time.

Ironically, Japan’s notoriously lax oversight of mixed martial arts makes DREAM a perfect fit for Diaz. He doesn’t have to worry about drug tests or athletic commissions who aren’t sympathetic to his claiming a need for medical marijuana. His workrate, conditioning and versatility as a fighter will be appreciated by the Japanese fans, and offers countless matchup opportunities for the promotion. Most significantly, perhaps, his participation with DREAM gives Diaz the opportunity to put his missteps behind him and reassert himself as one of the sport’s most exciting fighters and not one of its biggest troublemakers.