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Thursday trash talk: How will the Japanese media cover Nakamura’s failed drug test?
By Zach Arnold | September 26, 2007
There are multiple news reports that Kazuhiro Nakamura tested positive for marijuana. By North American standards, this would be just looked upon as stupid. However, by Japanese standards, this will be a story of much larger importance given their cultural standards on marijuana usage (hint: it’s really considered bad in Japan).
There’s two ways this story will play out — either the Japanese media will completely ignore it and no-sell the story (the ostrich method of reporting) or they will go full-tilt and just hammer the hell out of it. Given that J-ROCK’s power has diminished with the death of PRIDE, I expect the media to be less skiddish and will attempt to shame Nakamura. However, if the media no-sells it, then it means that the press thinks J-ROCK still has power in the Japanese MMA business. (My personal opinion is that if the Japanese media covers-up the drug test failure for Nakamura, it’s a sign that J-ROCK and K-1 are going to be working together in the future.) So far, only NHB News (Japanese) has picked up the story.
Update: Sports Navigator (Yahoo Japan) has picked up the Sherdog and MMA Weekly stories. Nick Diaz’s name is mentioned in the Japanese article (in relation to his drug suspension by the NSAC when he fought Takanori Gomi last February).
You’ve heard of MMA companies going public, but now it’s gone a step further. Buy a promotion on EBay for $50,000 USD.
The Strikeforce 9/29 Playboy Mansion show will be streamed on Yahoo. Kevin Iole has a profile piece on Gilbert Melendez. Here’s an audio interview that The Fight Network did with Gilbert on Wednesday. Here’s an interview that Gilbert did with Sam Caplan.
UFC’s production values in London.
The Rock talks about MMA. It is scary to watch what is happening in America right now with MMA and juxtapose it with how MMA swallowed up pro-wrestling in Japan.
Steve Cofield has a new radio interview with John Hackelman, Chuck Liddell’s trainer. Steve also interviewed Dorian Price from The Ultimate Fighter, who claimed that prisoners have it better than those in the TUF house. Matt Hughes writes on the UFC HP that he gave his team Bibles. Mac Danzig further elaborates. Eddie Goldman recently interviewed Renzo Gracie.
Where does Dana White rank as a sports executive?
Yesterday, Jason Andreasen of the Tiger Weekly publication wrote a drive-by article attacking MMA. It was factually-challenged in many regards and his article compared MMA to legalized dog fighting. Andreasen has been flooded with comments online for his hatchet job. Rather than intelligently defend his positions, Andreasen wrote the following to those who responded with criticism to his article:
LOL. This is great! I love coming on here and reading all the comments from you halfwit white-trash keyboard warriors who think you’re “ultimate fighters”. If your sport is so great, then why is it still illegal in most states? If your champions are so much better than boxers, why don’t they compete in boxing where the real money is? If it’s so safe, then why did the greeks and romans die in such matches? If it’s so classy, then why all the hip-hop music, tattoos, and female exploitation? Huh?
Oh, and for your information, I don’t know of ANYONE dying in a boxing ring in the last hundred years, and I only know of ONE DEATH in highschool or pro football EVER. If you can prove me wrong, do it… because you can’t.
Update: A claim that an imposter wrote the comment up above. What a zoo that has been created in Tiger land.
Onto today’s headlines.
- MMA HQ: California doesn’t mind the weed
- MMA Weekly: Presidential address, the state of the UFC
- MMA Analyst: The IFL could become interesting
- Steve Sievert: Houston Alexander wants a shot at Michael Bisping
- 411 Mania: Shogun to get knee surgery
- The Daily O’Collegian: Former OSU wrestler Johny Hendricks ready for MMA debut in Oklahoma City this Friday
- The Baltimore Sun: IFL wants to be the NFL of MMA
- Marine Corps News: Rich Franklin visits Camp Lejeune
- The Arbiter Online (Boise State student newspaper): Genetik smack-down
- The San Diego Union-Tribune: MiraCosta kung fu offers alternative to combat sports
- MMA Predictions: The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Ultimate Fighting - interview with Rich Franklin’s co-author, Jon Merz
- The Daily Campus (CT): Who would win in a street fight - Sean Sherk or Floyd Mayweather Jr.?
- Todd Martin: Slow-burn business model leads Strikeforce to Playboy Mansion show
Topics: IFL, Japan, MMA, Media, Pro-Wrestling, StrikeForce, UFC, Zach Arnold | | Permalink | Trackback | Share This
Is Arashi still in prison for his pot bust in Japan?
This Jason Andreasen guy is awesome. Tip: it’s easier to shame an editor by showing him how dumb their reporter is making them look than go directly at an obvious moron. Plus it increases the chances that you can get said moron fired.
Arashi is out on probation (3 years).
Human ignorance never ceases to amaze me.
Zach - the editor of the Tiger Weekly (Stephen Phillips) posted this about that comment you quoted…
“…the person who posted a comment under the name Jason Andreasen (comments 55 and 57) was not the author of this article…”
His comment is number 86 on that page - just an FYI
I still cannot understand why Nakamura of all people would smoke pot in the USA…it baffles me because it seriously endangers his Visa status.
Thanks Sean.
So if like…Strikeforce shows on yahoo, does that like…sizzle Kevin’s harddrive? I can picture him wobbling around, arms waving and screaming “Does Not Compute! DOES NOT COMPUTE! EXTERMINATE! EX-TERM-MIN-NATE!!!”
Nakamura smoking pot in America? Why would he?! There must be a mixup…
Marijuana can stay in your system for a while, so it’s possible (if the failed drug test is true) that he toked before heading Stateside. Then again, look at how many failed drug tests there have been in California for the grass.
Marijuana testing is getting somewhat ridiculous. Who cares, he still got beat by Machida, same with Michael Vick, He’s still getting owned by the legal system, why pile on some insignificant test that doesn’t matter.
Let’s see… in most (if not all) cases, people who enter into plea agreements are actually expected to cooperate and obey the law before sentencing. Michael Vick = mental midget in that matter. You would know a thing or two about mental midgets (some guy named Rex) in Chicago, right?
Rex isn’t a mental midget. If you actually watch a Bears game, he’s more of a scared child when anybody blitzs him, and he throws errantly bad passes every 2 or 3 passes. It’s more of a skill and nerves problem than mentally being not ready. He just can’t hang in the NFL. Griese will be no better, and Orton should start.
I understand the whole cooperate and obey the law aspect, but I’m sick of hearing these marijuana arguments. The guy is going to jail for awhile, I’m sure he doesn’t care, and personally, neither do I. Two indictments, the state being on a seperate charge to avoid double jeopardy, he’ll get more than 18 months.
If I was going away for 5 years there’d be a lot more in my system that a little marijuana!!! LOL
p.s. I’m kidding.
Kaz had a late night visit from Diaz via bong hit blown under the door.