The past few days have been a roller coaster for Bryan Caraway.
On Wednesday, the UFC bantamweight learned he would be receiving a $65,000 “Submission of the Night” bonus for his victory over Johnny Bedford at UFC 159. The bonus was originally awarded to lightweight Pat Healy, but after the former Strikeforce title contender tested positive for marijuana in his post-fight drug test, “Bam Bam” was suspended for 90 days and stripped of his additional earnings.
Therefore, the UFC passed the fight night bonus check on to Caraway, who had the only other submission victory on the card. The sudden turn of luck was undoubtedly a bright spot for the 28-year-old, but the good vibes wouldn’t last long.
The Washington native spoke to MMA Junkie about receiving the bonus money. This is where things went south. Rather than keeping the focus on the bonus, Caraway veered off into a diatribe on his disapproval for marijuana and the people who use the drug.
“Kid Lightning’s” comments on the topic immediately ruffled feathers throughout the MMA community, causing one fighter in particular (Nate Diaz), to lash out with a response of his own.
While Diaz‘s remarks created an uproar and evoked a suspension from the UFC, Caraway also took to Twitter to further explain his stance on the drug issue.
From his post on Twitter, it appears Caraway has some personal experience with the negative effects of drug use. While this experience is second hand, it was obviously something that has impacted his life and those close to him.
That being said, we very much live in a “to each their own” world these days. There is certainly nothing wrong with Caraway personally disapproving of the drug or its usage, but as soon as you start pointing fingers and using labels to describe the people who chose to do a certain thing, then you are taking a judgmental position.
Whether Caraway was trying to get across a larger message isn’t quite clear. But from the reaction his comments ignited on Twitter, it is clear that his opinion on the matter wasn’t well received.
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