(Short version: We’re going to pretend this fight never happened, just like we’re going to pretend marijuana is a performance-enhancing drug. / Photo via MMAFighting.com)
The greatest night of Pat Healy‘s career has been retroactively changed to some old bullshit. Following his fantastic rear-naked choke victory over Jim Miller last month at UFC 159 — which earned Healy Fight of the Night and Submission of the Night awards totaling $130,000 — “Bam Bam” failed his drug test, coming up positive for marijuana. As a result, Healy’s win has been changed to a no-contest, he’s been suspended from competition from 90 days, and he’s being forced to return the aforementioned $130k in bonus money and his $5,000 win bonus.
“I would like to start off by apologizing to the UFC, Jim Miller, the MMA community, it’s fans, my family, teammates and coaches for my positive testing for marijuana after my UFC 159 fight with Jim Miller. I was fully aware of the UFC and State Commission’s drug policies and made poor life choices. I stand behind the UFC and the State Commission’s disciplinary actions. I support efforts to make MMA and sports a clean, safe and fair place to compete…
(Short version: We’re going to pretend this fight never happened, just like we’re going to pretend marijuana is a performance-enhancing drug. / Photo via MMAFighting.com)
The greatest night of Pat Healy‘s career has been retroactively changed to some old bullshit. Following his fantastic rear-naked choke victory over Jim Miller last month at UFC 159 — which earned Healy Fight of the Night and Submission of the Night awards totaling $130,000 — “Bam Bam” failed his drug test, coming up positive for marijuana. As a result, Healy’s win has been changed to a no-contest, he’s been suspended from competition from 90 days, and he’s being forced to return the aforementioned $130k in bonus money and his $5,000 win bonus.
“I would like to start off by apologizing to the UFC, Jim Miller, the MMA community, it’s fans, my family, teammates and coaches for my positive testing for marijuana after my UFC 159 fight with Jim Miller. I was fully aware of the UFC and State Commission’s drug policies and made poor life choices. I stand behind the UFC and the State Commission’s disciplinary actions. I support efforts to make MMA and sports a clean, safe and fair place to compete.
“First and foremost, I would like to acknowledge and take responsibility for my mistake. I made a very poor choice to socially use marijuana and now I must face the consequences of that choice. I can assure you that I will do everything the UFC and State Commission asks of me and beyond. I will also make a conscious effort to be a better role model within the MMA community.”
Healy joins Matt Riddle, Alex Caceres, and Robbie Peralta in the growing list of UFC fighters who have been busted for marijuana this year. But Healy’s fine/suspension/no-contest is especially tough to swallow; you just hate to see a guy work so hard in this sport for so long, and have it all taken away the moment he finally cashes in. Obviously, Healy deserves a good deal of the blame here for a truly boneheaded personal decision. But it’s absurd that smoking weed essentially carries the same penalties for MMA fighters as steroids.
Does anybody want to start a Kickstarter account so Healy can get some of that money back? I mean, as long as he promises not to buy weed with it…
(“If you shortchange me again, Nick, I swear to God that retirement will no longer be an option for you.” Photo courtesy of Getty Images.)
Despite his longtime standing as one of the best referees in MMA, veteran official Josh Rosenthal has been noticeably absent from the octagon as of late. While he informed BloodyElbow earlier this month that his absence was the result of a staph infection, it turns out that his troubles were less physical — unless he has the worst case of glaucoma this world has ever seen — and more legal. According to the U.S. District Attorney’s office in Oakland, California, Rosenthal recently plead guilty to conspiracy to manufacture and distribute marijuana after a warehouse he owned containing 1,356 plants — valued at a street value of six million dollars — was raided last year. Rosenthal now faces a pretty lengthy jail sentence (via MMAJunkie):
Rosenthal is due in U.S. District Court on May 17. The government is recommending 37 months in jail, fines and five years of probation, during which he would be subject to random searches, according to the agreement. Without a deal, he faced 10 years to life in prison, a $10 million fine and a minimum of five years’ probation.
Rosenthal, who agreed to a plea deal in January, did not respond to request for comment. His lawyer of record, Ted W. Cassman, was unavailable for comment.
(“If you shortchange me again, Nick, I swear to God that retirement will no longer be an option for you.” Photo courtesy of Getty Images.)
Despite his longtime standing as one of the best referees in MMA, veteran official Josh Rosenthal has been noticeably absent from the octagon as of late. While he informed BloodyElbow earlier this month that his absence was the result of a staph infection, it turns out that his troubles were less physical — unless he has the worst case of glaucoma this world has ever seen — and more legal. According to the U.S. District Attorney’s office in Oakland, California, Rosenthal recently plead guilty to conspiracy to manufacture and distribute marijuana after a warehouse he owned containing 1,356 plants — valued at a street value of six million dollars — was raided last year. Rosenthal now faces a pretty lengthy jail sentence (via MMAJunkie):
Rosenthal is due in U.S. District Court on May 17. The government is recommending 37 months in jail, fines and five years of probation, during which he would be subject to random searches, according to the agreement. Without a deal, he faced 10 years to life in prison, a $10 million fine and a minimum of five years’ probation.
Rosenthal, who agreed to a plea deal in January, did not respond to request for comment. His lawyer of record, Ted W. Cassman, was unavailable for comment.
This of course begs one to ask: Why in the holy Hell was Rosenthal wasting his time separating sweaty dudes in a cage for peanuts when he was sitting on a goddamn gold mine? I know for a fact I’ve been told by experts in the field that harvest season isn’t for a couple of months, so unless Rosenthal has been using the UFC as his own personal barbershop over the years, it’s kind of puzzling that he would opt for the life of Joe Plumber over that of George Jung…
Then again, it sure would explain all of the recentdrug troubles the UFC has been having. TELL US WHO SOLD YOU THE DRUGS, DANA.
(And this is the face he will make after he does.)
Since being released from the UFC following his second positive test for marijuana in his past three fights, TUF 7 alum Matt Riddle has been doing his damnedest to burn every last bridge that might possibly connect him to the organization he has literally built his entire professional MMA career in. And while Riddle succeeded in raising some interesting questions regarding the UFC’s policy of hiring and firing fighters during his recent interview on The MMA Hour, he also succeeded in completely sabotaging any potential of a return trip to the sport’s highest promotion, which according to him, is something he would prefer:
What I see happening is, a year or two from now the UFC calls me back after I’ve won probably like five or six fights, hopefully. And I’ll probably, at the time, say, ‘No.’ Because I really don’t like the direction they’re taking the company. They’re firing high-level talent so they can have lower level talent just scrap, and they’d rather have a brawl than a good technical fight. I think that’s going to be their downfall, because the fans are getting more educated. They’re getting smarter, and they don’t want to just see a slugfest and two retarded guys with brain damage bleeding everywhere.
Dana White’s response was expectantly blunt. Get it? Blunt? Be honest, that pun is so great you’d probably beat your kids in a fit of jealous rage if you weren’t so goddamn stoned.
Much more from this interview after the jump.
(And this is the face he will make after he does it.)
Since being released from the UFC following his second positive test for marijuana in his past three fights, TUF 7 alum Matt Riddle has been doing his damnedest to burn every last bridge that might possibly connect him to the organization he has literally built his entire professional MMA career in. And while Riddle succeeded in raising some interesting questions regarding the UFC’s policy of hiring and firing fighters during his recent interview on The MMA Hour, he also succeeded in completely sabotaging any potential of a return trip to the sport’s highest promotion, which according to him, is something he would prefer:
What I see happening is, a year or two from now the UFC calls me back after I’ve won probably like five or six fights, hopefully. And I’ll probably, at the time, say, ‘No.’ Because I really don’t like the direction they’re taking the company. They’re firing high-level talent so they can have lower level talent just scrap, and they’d rather have a brawl than a good technical fight. I think that’s going to be their downfall, because the fans are getting more educated. They’re getting smarter, and they don’t want to just see a slugfest and two retarded guys with brain damage bleeding everywhere.
Dana White’s response was expectantly blunt. Get it? Blunt? Be honest, that pun is so great you’d probably beat your kids in a fit of jealous rage if you weren’t so goddamn stoned.
Self-sabotage aside, Riddle did raise some interesting points about the UFC’s non-existent policy when it comes to releasing fighters. Most notably, that of fellow stoner marijuana enthusiast Dave Herman:
But you’ve got to look at guys like Dave Herman. Three fight losing streak, gets knocked out like three times in a row, fails two drug tests for weed, and he’s still in the UFC. And I don’t take anything from Herman, I’m sure he’s a great guy. But I don’t know. I think that’s very hypocritical, and those are politics right there. That’s not good business. That’s you guys getting together, doing a little pow-wow, and being like, ‘Let’s get rid of Riddle. He’s fighting more conservative. He’s going out there for wins. He’s fighting more educated. And I’d rather hire a couple guys from Australia or the U.K. that just brawl, and pay them half as much.
Obviously, we’re not going to retread the same sub-arguments that inevitably come hand-in-hand with the topic of marijuana in MMA (marijuana vs. TRT, the legality of marijuana in America, etc.). While Riddle points out some obvious flaws in the UFC’s policy of firing and hiring fighters, he fails to realize (or just neglects to mention) that until the fighters of the UFC form some sort of union, DW and friends will continue to hire and fire whoever the hell they want, when they want.
Of course, no bridge-burning ceremony would be complete without a conspiracy theory or two, and thankfully Riddle has us covered there:
A lot of lawyers think I have a lawsuit for wrongful termination. And, you know, I’m not really trying to go that route, because I like to fight and I’m not really trying to bellyache about it. But at the same time, if didn’t fail a drug test, and something was added to my urine, like Creatine and THC, or something like that, then I would like to know. Because I just think it was just really convenient.
Then even after my fight, Dana White was making comments, ‘Oh, maybe if people started fighting more exciting, unlike Riddle lately.’ He did a couple interviews and mentioned how I haven’t been fighting exciting, and then just so happens, a couple days later I fail a drug test and I get fired. There’s just a couple variables, it just seems really fishy.
Perhaps the most hilarious thing to take away from this statement is the idea that Matt Riddle talks to not one, but multiple lawyers in between bong hits — lawyers that we should probably assume received their degree from the same law school as Frito and Charlie Kelly. But his Rafael Cavalcante-esque conspiracy aside, does anyone agree with the inconsistencies in the UFC’s mentality regarding releasing fighters as pointed out by Riddle?
(…and don’t even get me started on that damned Bubonic plague business.)
We’ve talked a lot about marijuana in MMA around here lately, mainly as a result of the recent statements made by UFC VP of regulatory affairs Marc Ratner, who declared that Dave Herman might be forced to undergo a rehabilitation program following his second positive test for cannabis in just four fights at UFC 153. Simply put, Ratner’s belief (although he didn’t state it outright) that marijuana was a bigger concern to the various athletic commission governing the sport than that of PED’s, is a load of horseshit. Pure, unadulterated, horseshit.
Enter boxing promoter Bob Arum, a dusty old geezer with an intellect rivaled only by garden tools who feels that the sport of MMA is rampant with homosexual skinheads that couldn’t throw a punch to save their life. He’s not exactly phone-a-friend material if you catch our drift. But when it was revealed that Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. had tested positive for marijuana following his unanimous decision loss to Sergio Martinez on September 15th, fans and members of the media alike were anxious to see how Arum would react to it.
Simply put, his response would have made Dana White proud.
(…and don’t even get me started on that damned Bubonic plague business.)
We’ve talked a lot about marijuana in MMA around here lately, mainly as a result of the recent statements made by UFC VP of regulatory affairs Marc Ratner, who declared that Dave Herman might be forced to undergo a rehabilitation program following his second positive test for cannabis in just four fights at UFC 153. Simply put, Ratner’s belief (although he didn’t state it outright) that marijuana was a bigger concern to the various athletic commission governing the sport than that of PED’s, is a load of horseshit. Pure, unadulterated, horseshit.
Enter boxing promoter Bob Arum, a dusty old geezer with an intellect rivaled only by garden tools who feels that the sport of MMA is rampant with homosexual skinheads that couldn’t throw a punch to save their life. He’s not exactly phone-a-friend material if you catch our drift. But when it was revealed that Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. had tested positive for marijuana following his unanimous decision loss to Sergio Martinez on September 15th, fans and members of the media alike were anxious to see how Arum would react to it.
Simply put, his response would have made Dana White proud.
I’m sorry that it happened, that he tested positive, but I’m not going to condemn a kid for smoking a joint a month before a fight to go to sleep. What the fuck is happening? I mean, let’s be real about it, let’s not be hypocrites about it.
Performance enhancing drugs, that’s wrong. Smoking a joint a month before a fight, take a poll here, what kind of percentage do you think of people [have] smoked a joint in the last month? So let’s be fuckin’ real!
Even more revealing than that, Arum told ESPN in an interview that took place shortly after the news broke that, “I can’t really get excited about it. There’s no promoter in boxing who could pass the marijuana test, including myself.”
Wait, so not only is Bob Arum way more in touch with current affairs than we previously determined, but now he’s the hip grandparent who blazes up with the best of us?
(Unfortunately for him, Bonnar’s sad puppy face failed to inspire any sympathy.)
Not that it really matters given his retirement from the sport and all, but according to the UFC’s VP of regulatory affairs, Marc Ratner, the verdict has already been turned in for Stephan Bonnar, who pissed hot after his UFC 153 loss to Anderson Silva. “The American Psycho” will receive a one year suspension as a result of his positive test for Drostanolone. But again, being that Bonnar pulled a Richard Nixon and got the fuck out of office — thereby negating the weight of all possible punishments — we’re sure he won’t be planning on putting up much of a fight. The fact that he has yet to even make a statement regarding his test further solidifies this theory.
But here’s where things get interesting.
Also according to Ratner, the punishment in the case of Dave Herman‘s second failed test for marijuana will not only be a suspension of “months,” but could require him to enter a rehab facility as well.
(Unfortunately for him, Bonnar’s sad puppy face failed to inspire any sympathy.)
Not that it really matters given his retirement from the sport and all, but according to the UFC’s VP of regulatory affairs, Marc Ratner, the verdict has already been turned in for Stephan Bonnar, who pissed hot after his UFC 153 loss to Anderson Silva. “The American Psycho” will receive a one year suspension as a result of his positive test for Drostanolone. But again, being that Bonnar pulled a Richard Nixon and got the fuck out of office — thereby negating the weight of all possible punishments — we’re sure he won’t be planning on putting up much of a fight. The fact that he has yet to even make a statement regarding his test further solidifies this theory.
But here’s where things get interesting.
Also according to Ratner, the punishment in the case of Dave Herman‘s second failed test for marijuana will not only be a suspension of “months,” but could require him to enter a rehab facility as well.
Other sports have a difference between PEDs and recreational drugs.
We feel very strongly that there’s a big difference between PED’s [performance-enhancing drugs] and marijuana. We think the commissions do a good job with PEDs, but we think with marijuana there should be some form of rehab involved, going through that kind of process and learning about it.
Let’s just back the judgmental truck up for a second, Mr. Ratner. If you’re one of the ten remaining people on this earth who thinks that the general public needs to be made more aware of any possible effects/dangers of marijuana, fine. That is clearly not the case for 90% of today’s youth, let alone a grown ass man like Dave Herman, but this is America, and although we may not agree with your assessment, we will defend to the death your right to say it.
But if you are going to declare that a fighter should have to undergo more treatment for a positive marijuana test than for a positive steroid-related test – in a combat sport, mind you — then it really calls to question your judgement as a former executive director of one of the athletic commission’s that are doing such a “good job” controlling steroid usage. While one of the substances you just mentioned allows a person to do little more than make it through a Taco Bell mexican pizza without vomiting, the other has a side effect that includes the word “rage” in the phrase. And you think fighters need to be made more aware of the possible dangers the former could lead to?
I don’t even know anymore. You Taters can take this one.
(If this man does not strike you as the kind of person who spends most of his free time getting stoned, playing Xbox, and waxing poetic about the flaws of Jiu-Jitsu, then we don’t know who does.)
When we first heard word that Stephan Bonnar and Dave Herman failed their UFC 153 drug tests — for Drostanolone and Marijuana respectively — we couldn’t help but reflect on the timeless words of George W. Bush when he stated, “Fool me once…..shame on………..shame on you. Fool me, I can’t get fooled again.” Unfortunately for Bonnar and Herman, they failed to fool the piss test even once while in the UFC (at least to our knowledge) and have felt the unforgiving wrath of the Interwebs as a result of their insolence. Hearts were broken. Tears were shed. Butts were hurt.
(If this man does not strike you as the kind of person who spends most of his free time getting stoned, playing Xbox, and waxing poetic about the flaws of Jiu-Jitsu, then we don’t know who does.)
When we first heard word that Stephan Bonnar and Dave Herman failed their UFC 153 drug tests — for Drostanolone and Marijuana respectively — we couldn’t help but reflect on the timeless words of George W. Bush when he stated, “Fool me once…..shame on………..shame on you. Fool me, I can’t get fooled again.” Unfortunately for Bonnar and Herman, they failed to fool the piss test even once while in the UFC (at least to our knowledge) and have felt the unforgiving wrath of the Interwebs as a result of their insolence. Hearts were broken. Tears were shed. Butts were hurt.
Go figure, the general sentiment seems to be that penalizing a fighter for smoking marijuana is overkill. That being said, no one is exactly quick to forgive a so-called professional like Herman who has tested positive for marijuana twice now in just a four fight UFC career.
When asked on the issue of Mary J, Tyrone Spong can only nonchalantly remind us that “I’m from Amsterdam,” with a smile. Point taken, Tyrone. Eddie Alvarez, on the other hand, couldn’t give a fuck if your were huffing cat piss and lighting off fire crackers in your ass before you fought him, because it probably wouldn’t improve your chances anyway.
Although the general public reaction to Bonnar’s second failed test has been that he was simply going honey badger for his final UFC fight, you have to imagine that “The American Psycho” suffered some undisclosed injury in training that forced him to hit the juice. Why else would he cheapen the value of the final fight of his career, especially when he asked for such a big fight to begin with? If it turns out that Bonnar was just juicing for the hell of it, it will really call into question what exactly he was thinking heading into UFC 153.
Look at me, trying to to understand the mind of this man. It’s like asking your dog why he chases his own tail. Or why your favorite prostitute will never say “I love you” back.
