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Dana White changes the focus on MMA drug testing to marijuana usage
By Zach Arnold | December 27, 2012
Video courtesy of MMAFighting.com
Give Kevin Iole credit for asking Dana White the right questions when it comes to the issue of drug testing in Mixed Martial Arts. I’ve been begging for more members of the media to get smartened up on what’s real and what’s not regarding Dana’s claims about being ‘regulated by the Government,’ which is preposterous spin that Baghdad Bob would be proud of.
So, naturally, Kevin Iole is getting trashed on social media for pressing Dana appropriately when it comes to the issue of drug usage in MMA.
Dana White fearful that increased drug testing would result in widespread positive marijuana tests
That’s the headline of Kevin’s article on Yahoo talking about White’s comments today. In many respects, the headline writer did Dana a huge favor and fell into Dana’s smart trick by moving the goalposts on the subject. Rather than talking about rampant testosterone usage, Dana is getting away with framing the issue now as a marijuana vs. PED drug usage situation. It’s masterful, on paper, because low-information news consumers (like the ones UFC is targeting with Ronda Rousey’s media stunts & remarks) will go into ‘marijuana should be legal!’ default mode instead of actually examining the real drug usage problems in the sport.
The problem for Dana is that when you actually listen to him try to spin his talking points about drug usage in MMA, he sounds like a fool who is ready to get exposed at any second.
Start at the 10 minute time mark of the embedded video.
“Government is involved in this sport but not other sports.”
Dana then rants and raves about going after veteran/retired athletes for past drug usage instead of busting the current athletes, which he blames on the strength of player unions.
“Don’t go after the old guys. … Everybody knew what they doing in the fucking 80s. … Go after the guys that are playing now.”
“It’s all a crock of shit. You either get serious and go after it or just shut up about it and leave it alone.”
Kevin Iole brought up Victor Conte’s name and Dana went off in a volcanic eruption.
“Fuck Victor Conte. The guy’s a lying, two-faced piece of shit. I can’t stand that guy. You’re the biggest cheater in the history of the fucking sports world and now because you can’t make a living cheating any more, you want to flip to the other side and start calling people out, pointing fingers. … Victor Conte is a two-faced piece of shit. I don’t care what his position is. I don’t care about him. Now he’s trying to flip the script so he can make a living on the other side.”
“We’re regulated by the fucking government!”
“[MMA drug testing procedures are] better than anybody’s else.”
“But it’s better in baseball and football? Oh my God. You think they randomly test? You think they’re going to test some of their big star players? But if that’s want people want to believe…”
Interestingly, when Kevin Iole mentioned Dr. Margaret Goodman’s name… Dana wanted no part in talking about her.
The problem for Dana, as you’ll hear in the video, is that he’s talking about 80% of MMA fighters using marijuana and yet he’s let Nick Diaz blow in the wind and suspended Thiago Silva for six months after a positive test for marijuana metabolites. So, the UFC spin on marijuana doesn’t jive there.
Of course, when you have Che Guevera in California booking a ‘marijuana doctor’ for shows…
The spin on “government regulation” is laughable, especially in Nevada where Keith Kizer relies upon non-endocrinologist Dr. Timothy Trainor to reportedly issue the hall passes for testosterone usage. UFC uses Dr. Jeff Davidson for overseas shows where no commission is regulating them and we know that numerous fighters on past UFC overseas shows have had testosterone hall passes.
For the life of me, I don’t know why Dana White continues to talk about the drug testing issue. He should plead the Fifth every single time a drug testing question comes up and advise the press to go talk to Marc Ratner instead. He would save himself a lot of grief.
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 14 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Dana is quite correct: MARIJUANA IS INDEED USED BY THE MAJORITY OF SPORTS PEOPLE EVERYWHERE:
* “I just let him know that most of the players in the league use marijuana and I have and do partake in smoking weed in the offseason” – Josh Howard, forward for the Dallas Mavericks. Howard admitted to smoking marijuana on Michel Irvin’s ESPN show.
* “You got guys out there playing high every night. You got 60% of your league on marijuana. What can you do?” – Charles Oakley (Chicago Bulls, New York Knicks, Toronto Raptors, Washington Wizards and Houston Rockets)
* “I personally know boxers, body builders, cyclists, runners and athletes from all walks of life that train and compete with the assistance of marijuana,” —WWE wrestler Rob Van Dam
* Some of the best cricket players of all time, like Phil Tufnell and Sir Ian Botham, have admitted to regularly using marijuana to deal with stress and muscle aches. In 2001, half of South Africa’s cricket team was caught smoking marijuana with the team physiotherapist. They were celebrating a championship victory in the Caribbean.
* “At least a good 50 [US] Olympic athletes” use marijuana regularly before they stop in time for testing.” —Stephany Lee
Your response just made my point on how effective Dana’s new spin here is on the drug issue. He suckered you in.
No one in the press or the fan base is arguing about marijuana usage being reprehensible or being a PED (which Keith Kizer laughably claims it is).
Dana has you and the low-information news consumer snookered into thinking the drug issue is about marijuana usage when it’s absolutely not.
The issue is about testosterone and other drugs that are being used at an alarming rate in a sport where guys go into a cage and beat the piss out of each other. Sadly, Dana has been shielded from so much controversy over the T hall passes because everywhere you look (radio, TV, print), some member of Big Pharma is shilling a new testosterone gel. If it isn’t Androgel 1.62, then it’s micro-dosing with Axiron under the arm pits.
What’s so difficult to understand about the notion that 1. Commission drug testing is a joke and 2. Commission penalties for marijuana are also a joke? Believe it or not, plenty of people are capable of holding those two thoughts at the same time and did so before Dana White said anything about it.
I’m a big fan of Iole and I admire the effort of some to put public “pressure” on White and the Fertittas to implement company sponsored year round testing. The problem is that I think the effort would be better spent elsewhere (not to mention the fact that I’m not sure I’d trust test results from Zuffa’s contracted testing company anyway). Lobbying efforts should be made to the commissions that are sanctioning bouts in my opinion. It’s ultimately their responsibility to monitor such things. Am I absolving promoters totally? Not necessarily. I’m just saying that the best ROI for your efforts lies in changing the system.
A fan of Iole?? I have never heard or seen that sentence uttered/typed ever. Are you in fact Kevin Iole?
So lashing out against Victor Conte is supposed to make up for the fact the UFC is not serious about drug testing it’s fighters for performance enhancing drugs? This Dana guy really is “special”.
I did not say that at any point. Are you literate?
Off topic but Goldberg is out AND he’s not ill. Hopefully this is the beginning of the end for Goldberg’s announcing.
This is the biggest “happening” so far for UFC 155.
Maybe Dana is finally doing something about all the internet bitching about Goldy…. Maybe he went back and rewatched a show and cringed.
If he were to need a legit small vacation, it wouldn’t be during one of the big shows of the year…. It is either…
1) Being pushed out for a bad performance.
2) Has a drug/alcohol issue.
I was never a Goldberg hater, but even I mentioned like a week ago on this website that I thought he has been doing a really bad job.
A lot of people on The UG seem to think he wasn’t looking very good during the last broadcast, so they think it is a substance issue. I’m sort of leaning towards that.
Either way, I think Anik is better then Goldberg at this point.
I thought it was reported as an illness?
Initially it was, then it was later to changed to Goldberg taking a break.
I think at this point it is pretty clear what is happening.
Joe Rogan has said on his podcast that somebody close to him has a pill addiction, and that person is not a comedian.
Goldberg has looked bad the last few telecasts. Both his physical state and also his commentating are really bad.
Goldberg also had really bad back pain going back to last year. He even talked about the issue of being on a plane going to Brazil with a jacked up back.
He probably started taking pills to make his back feel better and it probably just got out of control.
My guess is that Goldberg is either in rehab or they are trying to get him into rehab. Either way, he won’t be back in the UFC until he gets clean. I highly doubt they are going to fire him. Probably give him a few chances because people do want to see him get better.
Of course Dana isnt gonna hire VADA, he isnt gonna pay a company alot of money to basically help him lose money.
Guys popping for pot and PED, you think injuries are hurting the UFC’s bottom line wait until a surprise VADA test kills a big time main event and a card that should do 700k buys ends up doing 300k.
Dana’s stance is the government tests the fighters, who cares if its the best method for testing, they test, they regulate, thats on them. He just wants his guys to show up clean and pass the tests.
Sure he probably wants everyone to be clean but I dont see him risking losing big fights, cards, money, possibly hurting some of his stars name by doing VADA testing.
Zach: Are you picking Cain again like you did before their previous fight? I see same result occurring. Cain’s chin + Junior’s boxing/strength/speed/length = KTFO
It’s just a ‘smoke screen’ isn’t it.