MMA & Drugs

[GeneChing]

With today's NYT article, it's time for a drugs in MMA thread like our drugs in pro-wrasslin' thread (http://ezine.kungfumagazine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=46996).

Drug Testing Hasn’t Grown With a Sport (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/03/sports/othersports/03fight.html?_r=2&oref=login&oref=slogin)
By MICHAEL WEINREB
Published: July 3, 2007

He insists he has never used performance-enhancing drugs, but Jamal Patterson, a mixed martial arts fighter in the International Fight League, says he has been presumed guilty for years.

“People tell me, ‘You must have done something,’ ” he said in a telephone interview from Hoboken, N.J. “But genetically, I’m just a freak.”

Patterson wrestled in high school and played football at Colgate University. He is 6 feet tall and has slimmed down to 205 pounds for his career in the I.F.L., a team-based mixed martial arts league, which is among several organizations striving to bring this once-underground sport into the mainstream.

Patterson, who competes for the I.F.L.’s Pitbulls, says he knows how crucial public perceptions can be in a pursuit that combines punching, kicking and grappling, and that casual observers sometimes still confuse with professional wrestling.

The sport of mixed martial arts encountered doping problems last month at an event at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Royce Gracie, a pioneer of the sport, tested positive for the steroid nandrolone; Tim Persey tested positive for methamphetamine; and Johnnie Morton, a former N.F.L. receiver making his M.M.A. debut, had a higher-than-normal ratio of testosterone to epitestosterone in a prefight test, then declined to take a required postfight test. All three were later suspended.

Performance-enhancing drugs would certainly give mixed martial arts fighters a tremendous physical benefit because they can aid strength, endurance and recovery. But mixed martial arts, a young and booming sport, has no national or international governing body and lacks a rigorous drug-testing policy.

“Part of the problem is that there are all these small organizations that fight in garages and on Indian reservations and in strip clubs, and there’s no drug testing, and the rules are very limited,” said Kurt Otto, the commissioner of the I.F.L. “We need to legitimize every aspect of it.”

But Gracie and Morton were competing in a major event, promoted by Fighting and Entertainment Group, which is based in Japan and also promotes K-1, one of the top mixed martial arts organizations.

K-1, like the I.F.L. and the Ultimate Fighting Championship, the two most popular mixed martial arts organizations in the United States, relies primarily on state athletic commissions, which sanction mixed martial arts events in the same way they do boxing and other combat sports, to handle drug testing immediately before or after fights. But this means that in some states, not every fighter will be tested, and those who are tested will know roughly when it is coming.

“In general, I think this should not be done by the government,” said Dr. Gary I. Wadler, an associate professor of medicine at New York University who has served on several committees for the World Anti-Doping Agency. “It should be done by an independent and transparent agency that’s invested in seeing a drug-free sport.”

Drug-testing programs run by athletic commissions differ from state to state. In New Jersey, which has held several mixed martial arts events this year, all fighters are tested. A positive test for performance-enhancing or recreational drugs results in a 90-day suspension, according to Nick Lembo, counsel to the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board. A second positive test results in a minimum six-month suspension and mandatory enrollment in an inpatient drug treatment facility. A third positive results in a minimum two-year ban. The law also requires that other states honor those suspensions, Lembo said.

California recently began testing all fighters. Gracie was suspended for a year from the date of the fight (June 2) and fined $2,500, pending his appeal.

But at least one state does no drug testing at all.

“Our policy is that it’s up to the promoter to do the testing,” said Patrick Shaughnessy, a spokesman for the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, which sanctioned 23 mixed-martial events in 2006 and 13 through June 30 this year.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship held its first event in Texas in April in Houston, and none of the fighters were tested, said Marc Ratner, the U.F.C.’s vice president for regulatory affairs. “That doesn’t make sense to me,” he said.

Ratner, who spent 13 years as executive director of the Nevada State Athletic Commission, said the U.F.C. hired an independent laboratory to test four fighters at an event last month in Ireland.

Ratner also said that the U.F.C. had a clause in every fighter’s contract reserving the right to test randomly. Those tests, for performance-enhancing and recreational drugs, Ratner estimated, have been used only about half a dozen times. He said none had come up positive.

Neither the Ultimate Fighting Championship nor the International Fight League have a formal policy for the punishment and appeals process for fighters who fail a drug test.

Otto said he hoped the I.F.L. would have a program in place before the 2008 season begins. The league recently reached an oral agreement with USA Wrestling aimed at luring college wrestlers into the league, and Otto said he would work with national wrestling officials to develop a policy.

His hope, he said, was that mixed martial arts would eventually become an Olympic sport, which would mean it would be under the jurisdiction of the United States and World antidoping agencies.

Patterson and Pitbulls Coach Renzo Gracie, a cousin of Royce Gracie, said they hoped the I.F.L. would adopt random testing. “It’s not a witch hunt,” Gracie said. “It’s what the sport asks for.”

Otto was hesitant about whether the league would enlist an independent organization to oversee testing.

Travis Tygart, general counsel for United States Anti-Doping Agency, said independent oversight was a necessity with any testing program.

“Hopefully these new sports will recognize that they’re going to have to face these issues down the road, so they might as well do it now,” Tygart said. “They have to ask themselves: Are we going to hold on to the true value of sport? Or are we just going to be pure entertainment?”

The Jonny Morton thread (http://ezine.kungfumagazine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=46697) is slightly related.

[sanjuro_ronin]

Performance enhancement drugs are a part of life in sports, we just have to decided if we want them there or not.

[GeneChing]

From AOL Sports....

Not Enough Drug Testing in MMA? (http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/2007/07/03/not-enough-drug-testing-in-mixed-martial-arts/)
Michael David Smith
Posted Jul 3rd 2007 8:20AM by Michael David Smith

Under the headline "Drug Testing Hasn't Grown With a Sport," the New York Times has an article today saying mixed martial arts "has no national or international governing body and lacks a rigorous drug-testing policy."

It's an interesting piece and it's worth reading, especially after Royce Gracie, winner of the first Ultimate Fighting Championship (pictured) tested positive for steroids. But it suffers from the fundamental flaw that much of the mainstream media coverage of mixed martial arts has: It doesn't seem to fully grasp the distinction between the Ultimate Fighting Championship and other mixed martial arts organizations.

At one point, the article refers to "the I.F.L. and the Ultimate Fighting Championship, the two most popular mixed martial arts organizations in the United States." That's kind of like saying "Arena Football and the NFL, the two most popular football leagues in the United States." It's true, but it doesn't quite capture the huge gap in the leagues' popularity. UFC is by far the most popular mixed martial arts league, and IFL isn't even close.

UFC has a drug testing policy that, while it could be strengthened, has done a lot to take the league into the mainstream. Lumping UFC in with other, smaller mixed martial arts organizations is inaccurate and unfair.

[Becca]

Jamal Paterson (http://www.sherdog.com/news/Picture_gallery.asp?f_id=15887&pic_id=30691)


People who likely ARE doping (http://search.live.com/images/results.aspx?q=Body+Builders&mkt=en-US#focal=6dbb5e10ec9ddb7785c0128e07088a16&furl=http%3a%2f%2fblog.sellsiusrealestate.com%2fwp-content%2fuploads%2f2006%2f06%2fbody_builders.jpg)

I don't get how people could mistake his talent for doping... It's not like 'roids are hard to see in a high level athlete...:confused:

[bodhitree]

This Thread (http://ezine.kungfumagazine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=46996) has plenty of links about MMA athletes and steroids.

[Royal Dragon]

I'm dissapointed Gracie's test came back hot...... so much for BJJ's *Proven* results now...it's all chemically enhanced.

[Black Jack II]

I'm dissapointed Gracie's test came back hot...... so much for BJJ's *Proven* results now...it's all chemically enhanced.

Dude that is a huge stretch of a comment. Roids does not instill skill, gameness or dedication to one's craft.

Deca did not give him these things.

[SifuAbel]

Yeah, gameness comes from not showering.

[sanjuro_ronin]

The vast majority of drugs should be labeled "training enhancement" drugs rather then "performance", simple because they allow one to train harder, longer with less recovery.
Sure there are some that taken that day of competition can boost performance, but usually one takes them to improve the training stage, like steroids.

Nevertheless, we as specators must decide, so I want to see a 11 sec 100 meter dash or a 9.79 ?
Do I want to see 1000lbs deadlift or a 700 ?
Do I want to see an someone the looks like an athlete of a freak?

[Merryprankster]

Becca,

You can't "see roids." Lots of guys out here who take steroids aren't doing it to get huge or cut or ripped.

Steroids basically work like this, without getting into specifics: They improve protein synthesis and use in the body. This directly translates to improved damage repair, which directly translates to improved recovery time. They can also improve (or worsen) mood etc, depending. Side effects from steroids vary from roid to roid and person to person.

Anyway the point is that steroids allow you to train harder, longer, more often. This is why they are so popular in cycling. Those guys aren't exactly behemoths...

While you might gain some muscle mass depending on what you are doing, it is only if you choose to train in a way that increases your muscle mass that you're going to see those kind of results. *shrug*

As to steroids in the sport, you bet. Of course they are there....they're there in the amateur competitions even worse, and I've got almost complete suspicion that one guy I've competed against was taking steroids, and sheer odds tell me there were probably more. ESPECIALLY in the "submission grappling" side of the house, which seems to attract its share of thuggish tough guys *sigh*. Gi doesn't seem to attract the same demographic exactly the same, for some reason.

[Becca]

Ah. I see now. I guess I never really looked into what they do. I just bought into the hype about only vain people using them to get big. Even a cyclist is boud to want to be ripped, right? I could see the point in blood doping, but never realized you can get similar benifits from 'roids.

I guess it's more than just vanity. It also makes it harder to discide if it is wrong or not. I have been frusterated many a time when I couldn't train as hard as I might want to, and I don't have a pay check riding on it. It's a big rist to the fighter's health but, then again, fighting is a big risk to the fighter's health. One part of me wants to say that it is the athlete's desision wether or not they damage his/her body this way. But then again, should those who choose not to be handi-caped that way? Do the drugs really boost the performance enough to make an otherwise lack-luster fighter better?

Tough call.:confused:

[Black Jack II]

Merry is right, but from a groundlevel perspective there are a LOT of different people with different set viewpoints out there on why they are taking roids.

The old guy trying to stay fit, the young bucks thinking its a body in a syringe, the lifter, the smuck who stacks everything under the sun.

Personally I think they should be legal to consenting adults but its not my call.

[MightyB]

http://sports.yahoo.com/box/news?slug=ki-roids071907&prov=yhoo&type=lgns

I believe that Royce initially retired from UFC back in the day 'cuz of the roided fighters. Somewhere's around UFC 3 or 4.

[GeneChing]

...or Canadian bacon...whatever they call it... :o

Canadian MMA fighter Bill Mahood suspended after positive steroids test (http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5iimxd9bCmoXu0kOtBlTt1m9dVRIw)

Canadian mixed martial arts fighter Bill (The Butcher) Mahood has been suspended for one year and fined US$2,500 after testing positive for steroids, according to the California State Athletic Commission.

Mahood tested positive for Drostanolone at the Sept. 29 StrikeForce at the Playboy Mansion show, the commission said Monday.

The native of Prince George, B.C., lost to Bobby Southworth in the first round that night, submitting because of an injury. Mahood's purse was US$1,000.

The 40-year-old Mahood, whose record is 16-6-1, is a veteran fighter who has competed in the UFC, Bodog, King of The Cage and TKO circuits.

[lkfmdc]

CSAC: Adam Smith Tests Positive for Steroids, Cocaine and Marijuana

Posted by MMA Junkie on October 17, 2007 at 2:35 pm ET

Adam Smith has made mixed-martial-arts history — for all the wrong reasons.

The California State Athletic Commission today announced that Smith, who dropped a unanimous decision to Dewey Cooper last month at a Strikeforce show, has tested positive for anabolic agents with metabolites for both Nandrolone and Stanozolol. In addition to those steroids, the CSAC announced earlier this month that Smith also tested positive for cocaine and marijuana.

Smith becomes the first athlete in the state of California to test positive for anabolic agents and drugs of abuse at the same time.

With the two failed tests, Smith is now suspended a total of 21 months and fined a total of $4,000.

According to paperwork filed with the CSAC, Smith earned just $500 for the fight.

“Strikeforce at the Playboy Mansion” took place Sept. 29 in Beverly Hills, Calif. The event was streamed online at Yahoo! Sports, though Smith’s bout appeared on the un-televised undercard.

[Shaolin Wookie]

If you mix your martial arts, sooner or later, you're going to mix your drugs.


MMA is like weed---it's a gateway.......

[WinterPalm]

As soon as I saw Sakuraba/Royce II, I knew that he was juicing. The guy has fought competitively on and off for years, including against Matt Hughes, and he didn't look anywhere near the shape he was in there.

But for the most part, you cannot tell if someone is juicing it or not. Tim Sylvia got popped and he's not exactly a Mr. Universe type!

[GeneChing]

I just didn't feel like making a new thread for MMA & ice. :o

Sentencing For MMA Fighter Delayed In U.S. District Court (http://www.pacificnewscenter.com/default.asp?sourceid=&smenu=100&twindow=Default&mad=No&sdetail=14757&wpage=&skeyword=&sidate=&ccat=&ccatm=&restate=&restatus=&reoption=&retype=&repmin=&repmax=&rebed=&rebath=&subname=&pform=&sc=1718&hn=pacificnewscenter&he=.com)
Pacific News Center Staff Reporter 30.OCT.07
6:55 p.m. There's been a delay in the sentencing of convicted drug dealer Layton Ray Borja today in District Court. District Court Judge Frances Tydingco-Gatewood continued Borja's sentencing until November 19th in order to be able to call police officers in as witnesses.

Borja, a mixed martial arts fighter, faces a minimum sentence of up to 12 years and seven months in prison for possession with intent to deliver crystal methamphetamine, or the drug ‘ice’.

Because of his record as a career criminal, Borja faced a higher sentence, but the district court ruled that since the judgments on his Superior Court drug convictions in 2003 and 2005 were not entered into the record by the Superior Court Clerk's Office until just two months ago, the U.S. Attorney's office is now unable to ask for more time behind bars.

Unified Court Spokesman Dan Tydingco says a review of Superior Court procedures is under way in light of the revelation that Borja’s cases were not properly docketed

[GeneChing]

Any steroid stats for WWE? Just curious.

MMA not immune to steroid issues (http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/news?slug=dm-mmaroids121707&prov=yhoo&type=lgns)
By Dave Meltzer, Yahoo! Sports

With last week’s release of baseball’s Mitchell Report, as well as suggestions for improving the game, it's a good time to take a look at mixed martial arts and how to combat performance enhancing drugs.

One of the big problems with this topic, in all sports, is that the athletes have been taught, out of basic self-preservation, to lie about usage. It is a natural defensive mechanism: the public considers performance-enhancing drug use cheating, but the players who use rationalize that it's something the public doesn't understand.

So it becomes difficult to combat the problem, because there is no simple solution, and working on the complex question of how to truly level the playing field requires admitting the problem is widespread.

Worse, because the problem is widespread, it does the athletes no favors.

Every fighter who has a good physique, whether clean or not, is widely not just suspected but presumed to be on steroids. Since top-level fighters train extremely hard, those with good genetics are going to be pretty muscular to begin with, particularly when competing in a weight-class sport. The goal is to have the most muscle possible at a given weight, which makes body fat your enemy. So a clean, hard trainer with some genetic gifts is in many circles a suspect.

Even worse, those who train hard are suspected because steroids help in recovery from training. Those who show great strength, explosiveness, or simply stay competitive at an older age, are also the heaviest suspects.

In many cases, there is probably truth to the matter. But sadly, there have been athletes with great physiques who trained exceptionally hard and somehow managed to recover from that training who were strong and had great longevity long before athletes were using and abusing steroids.

And they competed at times when equipment, training techniques and knowledge of nutrition were primitive compared with today. But it's sad that some of the most successful performers who train the hardest have people saying, wink-wink, they must be on something. And this comes with no evidence except the fact they are successful, are in shape and train very hard, things they should be admired for.

Mixed martial arts has its own unique set of issues. With the sport still in its infancy, any perception that it may be a drug sport could risk alienating the public. A steroid issue won't affect the NFL’s bottom line, but the last thing MMA needs is the idea its fighters are guys on steroids beating each other up. MMA has had to work very hard to clean up what had been a largely unfair public image.

For a fringe sport, the steroid label can be ****ing, both when it comes to sponsorship and mainstream acceptance. Bodybuilding, powerlifting, weightlifting and track & field, even at the top level, have virtually no mainstream interest today as compared with previous generations, all in large part because of the drug cloud that hangs over all of their heads.

But the fact is, steroids work. In baseball, it's one thing to try to get an edge to keep your job. In MMA, there are limited numbers of jobs with top organizations. If you are outgunned in MMA it's not a matter of having your long fly balls caught or going over the fence, it's a matter of avoiding getting beaten up. That's quite the incentive to rationalize what you are doing isn't cheating, particularly if you think everyone is doing it, including your opponent. Potential health risks never scared athletes in other sports, but in this one you choose between an immediate health risk of being beaten up that you know is real, or a potential long-term health risk that many rationalize won't happen to them.

In California, over the past eight months, there have been 15 steroid positives in 54 MMA events, including major names like Royce Graice, Johnnie Morton, Phil Baroni and Sean Sherk, even though all but Morton publicly claimed they were innocent. Keep in mind that on most of the smaller events, only around six competitors per show were tested. On big events like UFC, K-1 and Strikeforce, every competitor was tested.

During the same time frame, there were two steroid positives in 85 pro boxing events in California and no positives in 13 kickboxing events.

In recent years, three UFC champions – Tim Sylvia, Josh Barnett and Sherk – tested positive in championship matches that they won. In Barnett's case, he tested positive the night he won the heavyweight championship from Randy Couture. Barnett and Sherk were stripped of their title while Sylvia voluntarily relinquished his before it would have been taken away.

PRIDE fighting superstars came to the U.S. this year and, as a general rule, were disappointments. PRIDE did not test for steroids before or after Japanese events, and the fact that fighters who excelled under those conditions did not do so with testing in place led to plenty of speculation.

Without steroids, fighters feel different. They don't have the same level of power or aggressiveness. Whether it always works, when fighters are facing a guy they presume is on steroids, their strategy is very different. They often rely on playing an early defensive game when the opponent would be at his strongest, thinking the early boost works against them in later rounds.

At this point, few MMA promotions do any drug testing. Most rely on the local state athletic commission. UFC has done random testing when they have run shows in the United Kingdom, because their equivalent of athletic commissions do not oversee MMA events.

This leads to inconsistent application and inconsistent punishment. California has a one-year penalty for a positive, but if you complain about it, there's a good chance it'll be cut to six months. Nevada seems to have a uniform nine months. Nevada fines a percentage of the purse, while California fines everyone, whether they make $500 for a match or $500,000, the same $2,500.

In Nevada and New Jersey, if you win a fight and test positive for performance-enhancing drugs, the result will likely be changed to a no contest. In California, the result stands, so Royce Gracie still has a recorded victory over Kazushi Sakuraba (after which he tested positive for steroids), which wouldn't be the case if that fight had been in Nevada.

On a positive note, MMA fighters, at least in key states, are tested by an outside agency. That probably makes the results more credible than a league whose best interests are in keeping taint away from its superstars. There has been much controversy over allegations baseball players were tipped off a day ahead of testing, and thus perverting the process.

In MMA, every fighter not only knows days ahead, but usually a month or two ahead, when he is going to be tested – the day before or day of the fight. But a fighter is not tested between fights.

The current process is better than nothing, but it is inadequate for combating the significance of the problem. Fighters have to be under the fear that an unannounced test can come at any time and with no warning. Without that, it becomes a game of learning to time how many days before a test your body clears whatever substance you are using. There is no deterrent for using, only for using during a short time frame before a fight.

The major promoters and major commissions need to work together to come up with a system that creates a uniform policy, both for suspensions, and overturning wins by fighters who test positive.

Ultimately, anything short of unannounced year-around testing isn't going to act as a significant deterrent, or leave anyone with full confidence in the system.

That leads to the worst problem of all. The fighters who are clean are not only at a competitive disadvantage in a sport where that disadvantage can mean a lot of physical pain, but if they are talented enough and train hard and smart enough to overcome it and dominate, they become the ones suspected the most.

[sanjuro_ronin]

And they competed at times when equipment, training techniques and knowledge of nutrition were primitive compared with today. But it's sad that some of the most successful performers who train the hardest have people saying, wink-wink, they must be on something. And this comes with no evidence except the fact they are successful, are in shape and train very hard, things they should be admired for.


This is so naive...

[GeneChing]

Busted MMA fighters can be quite different than busted teachers (http://ezine.kungfumagazine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=48947).

MMA's Borja to serve 12 years in prison (http://www.guampdn.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080104/NEWS01/801040306/1002)
By Stephanie Godlewski
Pacific Daily News
smgodlewski@guampdn.com

Leyton Borja, a mixed martial arts fighter, was sentenced to 151 months in prison with rehabilitation treatment to be determined by the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse. Judge Frances Tydingco-Gatewood waived any fine due to Borja's inability to pay.

He was also ordered to undergo three years of supervised release after his prison sentence, and received credit for time served.

Borja was arrested in February of last year for possession of methamphetamine hydrochloride, also known as ice, with intent to distribute.
The fighter had pleaded guilty. His initial sentencing was continued after contention arose over whether he assaulted a police officer at the time of his arrest.

The court asked the prosecution to bring to court the officers present during the incident to testify as to what occurred.

Airport police officer Keith Santos testified that Borja had assaulted him by throwing a police scanner at him then pushing him against a railing. Guam Police Department Sgt. James Santos testified yesterday that when he came upon the scene, two police officers were attempting to restrain Borja, but he was being "very combative and belligerent."

Defense attorney Howard Trapp, however, noted that James Santos had not seen how the incident began and whether Borja had incited it.

As the hearing continued, the prosecution argued that due to Borja's extensive mixed martial arts training, he posed a risk of serious bodily injury to the arresting officers.

Trapp argued that due to his mixed martial arts training, Borja was versed in how to cause serious injury, but didn't do so.

"I don't think we should give him six points for being a mixed martial arts fighter," Trapp said.

Tydingco-Gatewood ruled that Borja did pose a threat and therefore the six points were added to the offense level. Guidelines stated Borja should be sentenced to 151 months to 188 months in prison and be forced to pay a fine of $15,000 to $1 million.

After further arguments, Tydingco-Gatewood ruled on the lower end of the scale, taking into account recommendations from the prosecution, probation, Borja's difficult childhood and previous success at rehabilitation.

[Becca]

Interesting... I'm assuming the "points" that were added would make the charges worse, the way a 3 point trafic violation becomes a 5 point violation if you are found to be under the influence...

There's two sides to that. If the fighter really wanted to do harm, he would not have simply shoved the arresting officer. On the other hand, with his extensive training, he had to know that the authorities would treat any sign of hostility from him much more seriously that they would from, say, a nun... Of course, he was trying to sell drugs, so he couldn't have been that bright...:rolleyes:

[GeneChing]

Maybe this should go on the Frank Shamrock Cung Le thread (http://ezine.kungfumagazine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=48455). I'll do a cross link.
MMA Fighter's Medical Marijuana Leads to Trouble With California Athletic Commission (http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/2008/03/27/mma-fighters-medical-marijuana-leads-to-trouble-with-california/)
Michael David SmithPosted Mar 27th 2008 8:29PM by Michael David Smith

Nick Diaz is a mixed martial arts fighter who was scheduled to fight in Saturday night's EliteXC event in San Jose, California.

But the California State Athletic Commission has refused to license him for the fight. And the reason, according to EliteXC President Gary Shaw, is that Diaz has a prescription for medical marijuana. His manager Cesar Gracie says Diaz uses marijuana to combat attention deficit disorder:

"Nick is a naturalist by heart," said Gracie. "He thinks Ritalin is an amphetamine. He thinks that's really bad for you. People with ADD are kind of hyper, so he has trouble sleeping. He got the medical marijuana card and he takes his pot to go to sleep and be more focused. It's completely legal in California. Voters voted it in. The commission is actually supposed to obey that, so this will probably open up a legal case. If it was something small, OK, f---- it, whatever. But if they're not even going to allow him to test clean, that doesn't make sense. That's overstepping their boundaries."

But the Commission says that no matter what state law is on medical marijuana, it has its own rules, and that Diaz is in violation of those rules. Diaz, who last year was fined $3,000 by the Nevada State Athletic Commission for a positive marijuana test, will be out the $50,000 purse he would have earned for Saturday night's fight. He is expected to fight next in Hawaii in June.

[1bad65]

They do not test for drugs in Texas.

Your blood is only tested for AIDS and Hepatitis.

[jackmcmanus21]

The only way they could really put a hammer on the steroid issue is if they tested every fighter before and after every event. It is going to be tough to police it.

[GeneChing]

Does anyone else get stuck on the phone part of oxymorPHONE?

MMA fighters test positive for illegal painkillers (http://winnipegsun.com/Sports/OtherSports/2008/07/30/6303656-sun.html)
By THE CANADIAN PRESS

Two mixed martial arts fighters, taking part in different cards the same night in July, have tested positive for the powerful painkiller oxymorphone.

James (The Sandman) Irvin failed a drug test in Nevada while fellow light-heavyweight Justin (The Executioner) Levens was nabbed in California.

Irvin, who also tested positive for methadone, was beaten in the main event of a UFC card July 19 in Las Vegas. Levens was slated to compete the same night in Anaheim, Calif., on rival promoter Affliction's debut event. Ironically, the 28-year-old Levens did not fight that night due to time constraints.

Drugs.com lists methadone and oxymorphone as narcotic pain relievers, similar to morphine. They are not approved by the Nevada and California athletic commissions and both are on the World Anti-Doping Agency's prohibited list.

Levens (9-8) has been suspended until Jan. 15, 2009, and fined US$1,000. Levens' purse that night was reportedly $6,000.

Irvin (14-4-1), who faces a suspension and fine, has been requested to answer the Nevada commission's allegation in writing. His purse was $20,000

[Three Harmonies]

SH!T! Silva hit's so hard his opponents are STILL knocked the f&$k out, even when doped up on pain killers!!
Silva is the bomb! Mark my words he is going to be neck to neck with Fedor for the best ever!
Cheers
Jake :)

[mkriii]

ah heck, what's the harm in doing a little deca or a little d-ball from time to time. A good roid rage is good for ya. Let's ya get out all the stress and tention thats been building up inside. If ya smoke a little weed it will melow you out and you'll be back to normal in a matter of a few tokes.