Nick Diaz: Extended Post-Fight Interview

In this interview, following his first-round TKO over Maruis Zaromskis (13-4) at Strikeforce: Miami, Nick Diaz (21-7-0 1NC) discusses winning the belt, suspect judging and officiating in MMA, and why he disagrees with all of his career loses.

Nick Diaz also makes it clear that he would rather fight someone with a bigger name than Jay Hieron (19-4) for his first title defence. Interestingly, he continually insists that he would like to fight Georges St.-Pierre (19-2), which can't happen in Strikeforce.

Apparently, Strikeforce president Scott Coker sympathizes with Nick's position as it is now rumoured that Diaz' next opponent will be Hayato "Mach" Sakurai (35-10-2), who is much better known to MMA fans than Hieron. That fight is not a perfect fit either, though, given that "Mach" has lost his last two fights to Zaromskis and Akihiro Gono (31-15-7).

The CSAC Introduces "The Nick Diaz Rule"

The California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) has announced that even if a fighter holds a valid medical marijuana card, they still can't compete in the Golden State with any remnants of the substance in their blood. This is being aptly referred to as "The Nick Diaz Rule" since obtaining a license to smoke up was his latest attempt to thwart the CSAC.

According to the commission:

"Marijuana is a banned substance pursuant to Rule 303 and that any positive drug test may result in discipline. … The California Supreme Court has weighed in on 'medical marijuana' in the employment context and has found that an employer may discipline an employee for off-duty medical marijuana use. The court found that the Compassionate Use Act did not legalize marijuana use per se, but merely provided a defense to criminal charges under particular circumstances."

With this move, a new chapter has been added to the ongoing feud between Nick Diaz (20-7) and the country's various athletic commissions. They've been at odds for years over what Nick feels is his right to smoke-- while the commissions feels it is their duty to stop him. One of the more noteworthy events in this years-long battle came in early 2007 when the Nevada State Athletic Commission stripped Nick Diaz of what was arguably his biggest career win over Japanese lightweight sensation Takanori Gomi (31-5), who was ranked, at the time, among the very best in the world at 155lbs. Diaz finished Gomi with an exotic gogoplata submission in the second round, only to have the fight ruled a No Contest when it reportedly became known that his THC levels were so high that he had probably smoked marijuana on the day of the fight.

According to Nick's longtime friend and head-trainer Ceasar Gracie, in comments to MMAWeekly, what Diaz is doing isn't simple rebellion, it's a civil rights movement:

"I can't stop him. He's an adult man...What can you do, man? Rosa Parks wasn't supposed to ride in the front of the bus. She was supposed to be in the back of that bus. Nick is the Rosa Parks of MMA."

Given B.C.'s reputation as a mecca for Nick Diaz's beloved buds, there is little doubt that at least a few of you out there can sympathize with his plight.