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While shockwaves were sent through the MMA world when Octagon great Anderson Silva tested positive for a pair of performance enhancing drugs in the wake of his UFC 183 triumph over Nick Diaz, Diaz’s own failed test for marijuana came as no surprise. “Nick being Nick” is a catchphrase that’s become rather commonplace in the last several years amongst both fans and media.
While the 31-year-old Stockton native remains an elite competitor and proven draw, Diaz is finding the wins harder to come by. He’s tasted defeat against Carlos Condit, Georges St-Pierre and “The Spider” in his last three fights, although the loss to Silva could be eventually changed to a no-contest. Silva, for his part, continues to maintain his innocence.
Diaz hasn’t won a fight since a dominant decision victory in 2011 over B.J. Penn at UFC 137. He’s proven himself to be a tough to figure, reluctant warrior for someone who is as tremendously skilled at his craft as he is. Diaz possesses remarkable volume punching, a granite chin and endless cardio and enjoys a good brawl. The Silva clash unfortunately didn’t produce the epic striking battle that some had been forecasting.
In the wake of that huge event in Las Vegas, Diaz is now teasing retirement again. However, at this stage it’s getting harder and harder to take him seriously. He always eventually seems to get drawn back in.
Despite his win-loss struggles, Diaz remains as popular as ever. The former Strikeforce champion and UFC title challenger made a hefty $500,000 payday for his effort against Silva this past weekend. It was a performance that had many of the Diaz elements including plenty of taunting, trash-talking, displays of toughness, some good moments and complaints about judging.
While he clearly lost the fight to the legendary Brazilian, he wasn’t embarrassed, and did pretty well considering he was moving up a weight class to face one of the sport’s all-time greats. Diaz gave fans enough of a show to want to see him again. However, after this latest failed drug test, it remains to be seen when that will be.
Diaz is likely looking at a lengthy suspension after the third failed test of his career, but on the flip-side, he fights sporadically anyway. He was likely taking plenty of time away even if he passed the test this time around. Diaz’s hearing with the Nevada State Athletic Commission is set for Feb. 17.
The UFC clearly knows the headaches they face when booking Diaz for a fight, but there’s a reason why they keep calling on him. The promotion gets a fan-friendly, combustible fighter who bolsters their financial bottom line. They know while he’ll create some waves by skipping the odd interview or open workout, he always shows up on fight night. The solid projected numbers of 600-700 thousand for the Diaz-Silva UFC 183 PPV shows that fans remain interested in the unpredictable scrapper.
While Diaz will now likely do what he does and fade away for a significant period of time after his dream matchup against Silva, don’t be surprised if we see him fight again. There will come a point when he will need a big payday, and a point when the UFC needs him to be part of a major event again. When those factors are in play, that’s when Diaz will be back in the Octagon fighting another major name in either the welterweight or middleweight division. That’s just “Nick being Nick.”
Rick LaFitte is an MMA Writer for RantSports
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