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Pat Healy Tests Positive for Marijuana After UFC 159, Stripped of Win Over Jim Miller and $135,000 in Bonuses [UPDATED]

(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.

Healy confirmed the news in an official statement:

“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)

Healy confirmed the news in an official statement:

“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…

UPDATE: Healy’s Submission of the Night bonus will now go to Bryan Caraway, the guy who campaigned for the bonuses to be raised from $50,000 in the first place. Nice work, Bryan.

Pat Healy Tests Positive for Marijuana at UFC 159, Apologizes for Poor Choices

UFC 159 fighter Pat Healy has tested positive for marijuana following his win over Jim Miller at the event in New Jersey held last month. According to a statement from Healy released through his management team at Iridium Sports Agency on Tuesday, the …

UFC 159 fighter Pat Healy has tested positive for marijuana following his win over Jim Miller at the event in New Jersey held last month.

According to a statement from Healy released through his management team at Iridium Sports Agency on Tuesday, the former Strikeforce contender has taken responsibility for the mistake following the positive test returned from the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board.

“I would like to start off by apologizing to the UFC, Jim Miller, the MMA community, its fans, my family, teammates and coaches for my positive testing for marijuana after my UFC 159 fight with Jim Miller.” Healy said in a statement emailed to Bleacher Report on Tuesday. “I was fully aware of the UFC and State Commissions 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’s manager Jason House also confirmed the positive drug test when speaking to Bleacher Report on Tuesday evening after they received a letter from the New Jersey commission about the results.

“It was a social mistake,” House stated. “He knows he made a mistake and made a poor choice.”

According to House, the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board has not handed down any punishment to Healy as of yet for the positive drug test. House says the commission will hold a meeting to decide on Healy’s punishment at a later date.

New Jersey State Athletic Control Board counsel Nick Lembo responded to Bleacher Report on Tuesday evening but stated “no comment” regarding Healy’s positive drug test or possible suspension. Because of medical laws in the state, New Jersey is not required to release drug test results to the public unless the fighters choose to release the information themselves.

If there is another downside to Healy’s positive drug test, it’s the fact that he will likely now lose his post-fight bonuses that came out to $130,000 for his performance that night. Healy earned two separate $65,000 bonuses for Submission of the Night and Fight of the Night in his fight with Miller.

Earlier this year, however, the UFC instituted a new policy that all post-fight bonuses be withheld until drug testing results had been returned. Unless a different decision is made in Healy’s case, it appears the fighter will lose both of his bonuses.

UPDATE: According to representatives from Healy’s camp in a statement to Bleacher Report, the initial letter received from the commission indicated a 90-day suspension for the infraction and his win against Miller would be overturned to a no-contest. The information was also confirmed in a report by MMAJunkie.com.

Damon Martin is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report

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MMA Referee Rob Hinds Talks Eye Pokes, 10-10 Rounds, Communication and Focus

Longtime MMA official Rob Hinds has been inside the cage as a referee for more than 4,000 professional fights and sat outside as a judge for almost 1,000. There is not much he hasn’t seen or heard. He is leading the charge in educating…

Longtime MMA official Rob Hinds has been inside the cage as a referee for more than 4,000 professional fights and sat outside as a judge for almost 1,000. There is not much he hasn’t seen or heard.

He is leading the charge in educating new and current MMA officials. His company, Combat Consulting, teaches MMA referees and judges in seminars around the country.

Recently, he provided his insight into the controversial and rare technical decision between Gian Villante and Ovince St. Preux. At UFC 159, referee Kevin Mulhall paused the action early in the third round after Villante suffered an inadvertent eye poke from St. Preux. Mulhall then waived off the bout after Villante informed him he couldn’t see. St. Preux won the contest by majority technical decision.

“Any time a fighters tells a referee ‘I can’t see’ or ‘I can’t breathe,’ the only procedure at that time is to call the fight,” Hinds explained on Wednesday as a guest on Darce Side Radio.

Hinds said there could have been “better communication” or “more time to deliberate” or “call in the doctor”; however, once Villante admitted he couldn’t see, proper procedure was followed.

He said, “In the heat of the moment, that procedure was heard, which caused Villante to give the one incorrect answer that you can’t give a referee. At that point, once that is verbalized, you have to call the fight.

“Maybe ask him a more general question: Are you all right, man? Do you need to see the doctor?” Hinds suggested. “Normally that gives you a more general answer, and then you can call in the doctor and actually give a little bit of time.”

Eye pokes have been a sore subject in MMA for some time. Suggestions about altering the style of gloves are often bandied about. Another common question is: Why aren’t fighters given five minutes like they are for incidental groin strikes?

Hinds had this to say:

The reason a groin shot gets five minutes is because there’s absolutely no way for the doctor to check what’s happening there. You can’t pull down their shorts or jock strap and all that and examine. Any other injury, a thumb injury an eye injury the doctor can physically look at it, take an evaluation, clear blood away, ask questions, those types of things.

Hinds explained that it’s not necessarily about having an automatic five-minute rule but more about proper referee procedure.

It’s a determination of the referee on how much recovery time they get. So it doesn’t need to be an automatic five minutes. Again, this is a procedural thing from referees to where they need to take their time, assess the fighter, call the doctor if necessary, and this whole time they are getting a chance to recover.

After the fight had concluded—and St. Preux had been declared the winner—the scorecards were revealed, which showed that judges Eric Colon, Michael DePasquale Jr. and Jose Tabora had scored the incomplete round 10-10.

According to Hinds, even in that short of period of time, one fighter should have been awarded 10-9 as someone had to have “some effective advantage over their opponent.”

I always say a 10-10 round is like a unicorn. Some people claim they’ve seen them, some people believe in them, but they don’t really actually exist. Now, for that 33 seconds; if they just circled each other, and nobody threw a punch, kick, knee, tried a takedown, if they did absolutely nothing but circled for the 33 seconds, then you would have a 10-10 round because you didn’t have any effective offense or any effective technique.

Jose Tabora actually scored both the second and third round 10-10.

For a professional judge at that level to score a 10-10 to begin with, and then have two 10-10 rounds in one bout, that’s either the most boring bout we’ve seen or there needs to be further evaluation of those officials who score those 10-10 rounds.

Hinds explained that the sudden stop at the beginning of Round 3 between Villante and St. Preux could have provoked the three 10-10 scores.

One of the things that happens with judges on incomplete rounds is it kind of takes you by surprise. You have the pause in the action due to the injury, and some judges if they’re not focused, they’ll forget what happened up until that point.

Hinds offered a refreshing and insightful take on what many fighters, managers, promoters and fans have complained about lately. If more referees were to communicate better and more judges were to improve their focus, maybe there would be fewer complaints about refereeing and scoring.

Michael Stets is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

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Jon Jones’ Toe Injury: Orthopedic Surgeon Breaks Down the Injury and Rehab

If you watched UFC 159 live, odds are pretty slim that you caught the moment when UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones’ big left toe decided it was going to attempt to leave the Octagon while the rest of Jones’ body was still focused on…

What you did see was a victorious and smiling Jones leaning in to talk to UFC commentator Joe Rogan and glancing down for a second only to see the hot mess his foot had become. Jones’ smile was immediately gone as he uttered, “Oh, my word,” before limping away and leaving bloodstains tracked across the canvas.

Jones did his best to play it cool in the cage, smiling and telling the crowd, “No laughing guys, this sucks,” before forcing himself through the interview with Rogan while the medical staff worked on the toe.

The injury resulted in an indefinite suspension for the champion from the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board pending clearance from an orthopedist.

On the most recent edition of UFC Tonight, Orthopedic Surgeon Dr. Robert Klapper spoke in detail about Jones’ injury, breaking things down in laymen’s terms. Surprisingly, the doctor said that Jones’ injury was a dislocation and not a break. Dr. Klapper then revealed that Jones should be back to fighting in six to eight weeks.

If Dr. Klapper is correct, the UFC dodged a pretty big bullet and avoid a lengthy rehab process for the light heavyweight champion.

Jones tweeted the following photo on the night of the fight:

A few days later the champion followed things up, showing a sense of humor when he said:

Bleacher Report will have more details on Jones’ injury and rehab as they become available.

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UFC and Cheick Kongo Part Ways as Organization Won’t Renew Contract

There has been more than a little bit of confusion surrounding UFC heavyweight Cheick Kongo and his status with the UFC following his loss to Roy Nelson at UFC 159. Bloody Elbow reported that his profile on UFC.com had been removed, meaning i…

There has been more than a little bit of confusion surrounding UFC heavyweight Cheick Kongo and his status with the UFC following his loss to Roy Nelson at UFC 159.

Bloody Elbow reported that his profile on UFC.com had been removed, meaning it was likely Kongo had been released from the UFC following his recent loss.

Since the defeat, Kongo has made no public statement about his future with the UFC, but speculation ran wild that he had been cut from the roster. The loss at UFC 159 moved Kongo’s record to 2-2 over his last four fights overall.

UFC officials confirmed with Bleacher Report on Wednesday via email (as well as MMA Fighting) that Kongo’s fight at UFC 159 was actually the last bout on his current contract. At this time, it appears his deal with the promotion will not be renewed.

Kongo began his run with the promotion all the way back in 2006 when he had his first fight at UFC 61 against Gilbert Aldana.

Throughout his time with the UFC, Kongo amassed a 11-6-1 record overall while picking up wins against fighters such as Mirko “Cro Cop,” Pat Barry and Matt Mitrione. His victory over Barry is considered one of the greatest comebacks in UFC history—Kongo was knocked down twice in the first round only to battle back with a knockout punch that won him the fight and the “Knockout of the Night” bonus to boot.

Kongo also went to a draw with current heavyweight competitor Travis Browne in a closely contested bout.

While always a competitor in the heavyweight division, Kongo struggled to ever reach the heights of the weight class, falling just short every time he appeared to be on a run towards contender status.

Losses to names like Cain Velasquez, Frank Mir and Mark Hunt always seemed to keep Kongo from getting into scenarios that would lead to title fights. His most recent loss last weekend at UFC 159 ended after former winner of The Ultimate Fighter Roy Nelson connected with a huge overhand right that sent the French heavyweight crashing to the canvas.

With all signs pointing towards the UFC not renewing his contract at this time, Kongo will likely fight for a new promotion when he signs his next deal at some point in 2013.

Damon Martin is a Featured Columnist at Bleacher Report.

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Jon Jones’s Toe Wasn’t Actually Broken (?!); Champ Will Be Ready for Action in 6-8 Weeks

(‘Tis but a scratch.)

Despite initial assumptions that Jon Jones suffered a compound fracture of his left big toe during his UFC 159 title defense against Chael Sonnen, the injury was later determined to be a dislocation. (You know, kind of like how Miesha Tate didn’t actually get her arm snapped in half by Ronda Rousey, despite all visual evidence to the contrary.) Dr. Robert Klapper, Chief Orthopedic Surgeon at Cedars-Sinai Hospital, appeared on yesterday’s installment of UFC Tonight to explain Jones’s injury, and give his insight on the recovery process, which doesn’t sound so bad, considering how ugly things looked on Saturday.

“The rehab involves, number one, you put [the toe] back into place,” Klapper said. “Line it up again. Wash out the joint because there’s lots of bad bacteria on that mat, and you need to make sure there’s no infection. The rehabilitation is just let things scar down, which they will. Because there’s no fracture of the bone — it’s just a dislocation — in six weeks it’s healed, then you start range of motion and strengthening. Back to fighting, six to eight weeks.”

Alright, so Bones is out of action for two months, tops, which means that Lyoto Machida’s proposed #1 contender bout against Alexander Gustafsson might not be necessary after all. Condolences, Lyoto.

(‘Tis but a scratch.)