Coach: Diaz will fight again
Cesar Gracie on talk about Nick Diaz possibly retiring following his positive marijuana test: “Let’s face it, he’s a fighter and he’s gonna fight. It’s gonna happen.”
Nick Diaz recently tested positive for marijuana metabolites after his fight with Anderson Silva at UFC 183, for the third time. The first offense was a six month suspension, and the second was a year. The third time could be drastic, particularly because the Nevada State Athletic Commission raised the level from 50 ng/ml to 150, and Diaz tested at 300. However, the urine test of marijuana can detect significant levels of metalbolites days after a test, if it was ingested, several days.
Further, society’s views of marijuana are rapidly changing.
So the NSAC may not come down too harshly on him. However, Diaz recently tweeted enigmatically, “Love my people #mma #lodi #dunfighting.”
In good news, Diaz’s coach Cesar Gracie appeared recently on Ariel Helwani’s The MMA Hour, and said Diaz will fight again.
“Let’s face it,” said Gracie as transcribed by Marc Raimondi for MMAfighting. “He’s a fighter and he’s gonna fight. It’s gonna happen.”
“I think a guy like him is better served doing big fights, no matter where they’re at. Seriously, no matter where the fight is — even if he has to go down a lighter weight than even 170. He wants big fights. That’s what motivates him. I think that’s what the greatest guys did was they didn’t look so much at weight classes, but they looked at the big fights that motivate them.”
“Who wouldn’t want to see Vitor Belfort or someone like that fight Nick? Or who wouldn’t want to see maybe Nick beat a 170-pounder and then fight Lawler if that’s what they have to happen? There’s different scenarios I think that would be fun.”
“I don’t want to see Nick go out there and fight some guy he never heard of at 170 or some up-and-comer. He’s already past all that. He deserves the respect of having big fights.”
Amen.