Nate Diaz will be subject to marijuana testing for the upcoming boxing match with Jake Paul.
On Saturday, August 5th in Dallas, Texas, Jake Paul and Nate Diaz will square off in an eight-round boxing match.
‘MMA Fighting’ initially reported that Diaz will be subject to marijuana testing prior to the fight. Apparently, the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, which oversees combat sports in the state of Texas, maintains Diaz is subject to the same rules as everyone else quoting:
“Mr. Diaz will be held to the same rules as everyone else who competes in combative sports events in Texas.”
Many states and other regulatory bodies like the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), no longer punish or enforce marijuana use with the fighters. However, not so for the TDLR, who has a strict 50 ng/ml THC threshold in which any THC level over 50ng/ml is a violation.
Violating that threshold entitles the athlete to a 90-day suspension and a $500 fine according to TDLR rules.
Image via jiu jitsu times
This could pose a problem for the 38-year-old in Nate Diaz. The Californian has been very open concerning his use of marijuana and has been seen smoking at press conference and workouts.
When asked by ‘MMA Junkie‘ about drug testing at Tuesdays press conference promoting the upcoming Paul vs Diaz bout, ‘The Stockton Native’ said:
“There’s a lot of weed in (my system). There is.”
Following up with the no tolerance policy for marijuana in the state of Texas, Diaz responded:
“Wait what happened? Well, let’s go to California.”
The question now becomes can and will Nate Diaz lay off the weed for an extended period of time in accordance with Texas rules in order to fight in Dallas, or will he convince the powers that be that the boxing match needs to be moved to a different state and a different venue.
Do you agree with the Texas anti-marijuana rule?
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