Ronda Rousey: 'There's no reason that we should be tested for weed'
By Ryan McKinnell
September 16, 2015 7:54 PM
Cagewriter
UFC fighter Nick Diaz received a five-year suspension from the Nevada Athletic Commission on Tuesday. The half-decade exile came on the heels of a failed drug test for marijuana before his UFC 183 fight with Anderson Silva in January.
The ruling sent shockwaves across the MMA landscape and many clamored in support of Diaz.
Sure, Diaz was a repeat offender, but this is America in 2015. And in a society where marijuana is legal in various forms in different states, the idea that a repeat marijuana offender could somehow be given a harsher sentence than a repeat steroid abuser (say, Vitor Belfort or Chael Sonnen) was a surprise to many.
One fighter who really let the NAC have it was UFC superstar and media darling Ronda Rousey.
Rousey, 28, is not one to shy away from a camera or a little bit of controversy. And seeing as Nick Diaz is a ‘close and dear friend’ of Ronda’s, apparently she felt compelled to respond.
“There’s no reason that we should be tested for weed,” Rousey said at a recent UFC 183 press conference in Melbourne. “It shouldn’t be involved at all. Nick is a really close and dear friend of mine so of course I’m going to defend him. It’s so unfair.”
She continued, ”I’m against testing for weed at all. It’s not a performance-enhancing drug and it has nothing to do with athletic competition; it’s only tested for political reasons.
“They say, ‘It’s only for your safety to keep you from hurting yourself.’ You know what, then why don’t they test us for all the other things that could possibly hurt us, that we could be under the influence of when we’re out there?
“If one person tests for steroids, that could actually really hurt a person, and the other person smokes a plant that makes him happy, and he gets suspended for five years! Whereas a guy who could hurt someone so much that he could’ve died in there [and] he gets a slap on the wrist! It’s not fair. It’s not fair at all. It doesn’t make me a bad person for saying it, I just can’t believe it’s not being said more.”
Another powerful UFC figurehead who felt obliged to speak up was UFC announcer and stand-up comic Joe Rogan.
Rogan, an ardent supporter of marijuana legalization, called the commission ‘callous, idiotic and sickening’ in a set of tweets sent out via social, “NSAC suspending Nick Diaz for 5 years for pot is an irresponsible abuse of power,” Rogan tweeted. “It’s callous, idiotic and sickening.
“Unless there’s scientific proof that marijuana is a performance-enhancing drug that gives an unfair advantage, it should not be restricted.”
Diaz's attorney, Lucas Middlebrook, has stated that his client will challenge the five-year suspension and contest the ruling in an actual court of law.
By Ryan McKinnell
September 16, 2015 7:54 PM
Cagewriter
UFC fighter Nick Diaz received a five-year suspension from the Nevada Athletic Commission on Tuesday. The half-decade exile came on the heels of a failed drug test for marijuana before his UFC 183 fight with Anderson Silva in January.
The ruling sent shockwaves across the MMA landscape and many clamored in support of Diaz.
Sure, Diaz was a repeat offender, but this is America in 2015. And in a society where marijuana is legal in various forms in different states, the idea that a repeat marijuana offender could somehow be given a harsher sentence than a repeat steroid abuser (say, Vitor Belfort or Chael Sonnen) was a surprise to many.
One fighter who really let the NAC have it was UFC superstar and media darling Ronda Rousey.
Rousey, 28, is not one to shy away from a camera or a little bit of controversy. And seeing as Nick Diaz is a ‘close and dear friend’ of Ronda’s, apparently she felt compelled to respond.
“There’s no reason that we should be tested for weed,” Rousey said at a recent UFC 183 press conference in Melbourne. “It shouldn’t be involved at all. Nick is a really close and dear friend of mine so of course I’m going to defend him. It’s so unfair.”
She continued, ”I’m against testing for weed at all. It’s not a performance-enhancing drug and it has nothing to do with athletic competition; it’s only tested for political reasons.
“They say, ‘It’s only for your safety to keep you from hurting yourself.’ You know what, then why don’t they test us for all the other things that could possibly hurt us, that we could be under the influence of when we’re out there?
“If one person tests for steroids, that could actually really hurt a person, and the other person smokes a plant that makes him happy, and he gets suspended for five years! Whereas a guy who could hurt someone so much that he could’ve died in there [and] he gets a slap on the wrist! It’s not fair. It’s not fair at all. It doesn’t make me a bad person for saying it, I just can’t believe it’s not being said more.”
Another powerful UFC figurehead who felt obliged to speak up was UFC announcer and stand-up comic Joe Rogan.
Rogan, an ardent supporter of marijuana legalization, called the commission ‘callous, idiotic and sickening’ in a set of tweets sent out via social, “NSAC suspending Nick Diaz for 5 years for pot is an irresponsible abuse of power,” Rogan tweeted. “It’s callous, idiotic and sickening.
“Unless there’s scientific proof that marijuana is a performance-enhancing drug that gives an unfair advantage, it should not be restricted.”
Diaz's attorney, Lucas Middlebrook, has stated that his client will challenge the five-year suspension and contest the ruling in an actual court of law.
