To Whom It May Concern,
I followed Nick Diaz’s hearing on UFC Fight Pass today, and I can only say that I was extremely disappointed to see such a profound miscarriage of justice on the part of the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
Not only was Commissioner Lundvall exceedingly rude to Mr. Diaz’s very professional counsel, Lucas Middlebrook, but the decision of the Commission seemed only to serve the egos and vested interests of the commissioning body itself, not the athletes it is meant to protect.
When given three drug tests from which to choose, the Commission inexplicably sided with the one that incriminated Mr. Diaz, despite the fact that, compared to the results of the other two, arguably more credible tests, it read like an extreme outlier. When questioning Mr. Diaz regarding this, Commissioner Lundvall repeatedly and abusively asked Mr. Diaz humiliating questions despite his attorneys’ insistence that he would be pleading the Fifth Amendment for the duration of the proceeding. It was nothing short of a vendetta against Mr. Diaz.
It is relevant to remember that, just over a year prior, the same Commission had called ex-fighter Chael Sonnen a “friend of the commission” and thanked him for his cooperation after his third career drug test failure. Mr. Sonnen’s failures were for steroids and undisclosed testosterone therapy, both of which are certainly more “performance enhancing” than marijuana. One would think that an athletic commision such as the NSAC would be more interested in stomping out performance enhancing drugs rather than a recreational and medicinal substance which is rapidly gaining acceptance across the nation, but that would only be true if the Commission was truly interested in bettering the sport.
All of this sends a very clear message to fighters: obeisance is preferable to innocence.
I may lack the legal or medical expertise to argue adequately on Mr. Diaz’s behalf, and I certainly can’t defend him for the drug tests he failed in the past. It was clear to me, however, that the Commission was far more interested in doling out punishment than they were in seeing justice done. Having witnessed such a profound display of the nontransparency and self-importance inherent to the Nevada State Athletic Commission, I can only say that I look forward to seeing the decision to give Mr. Diaz an absurd five-year suspension appealed in a higher court.
Sincerely,
Connor Ruebusch
BloodyElbow.com
*****
If you would like to contact the NSAC, you can send them an email at boxing@boxing.nv.gov. Please be respectful and refrain from abusive language if you choose to do so.
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