Reflection time

Nick Diaz may have an even bigger reason to retire from mixed martial arts.

It was revealed by the Nevada State Athletic Commission on Thursday that Diaz tested positive for marijuana following his controversial loss to Carlos Condit for the interim welterweight title last Saturday at UFC 143.

Having tested positive for marijuana back in 2007 following a fight he won in Las Vegas but was later ruled a no-contest, he received a six-month suspension by the NSAC. The likelihood is this suspension will be double that -- his manager/head coach Cesar Gracie cryptically suggested on Wednesday that Diaz would be out for at least a year but didn't specify the reason.

Diaz could try to appeal the positive test, but his history with the drug suggests this didn't happen unknowingly or through some nefarious reason that somebody was trying to sabotage him. We can safely suggest there is no conspiracy here, other than what Diaz has done to himself and his future in MMA.

"I am beyond disappointed that he tested positive for marijuana," UFC president Dana White said. "It is now in the hands of the Nevada State Athletic Commission."

Whatever the commission does in terms of sentencing, White holds Diaz's UFC contract and it's highly unlikely he will be in a forgiving mood.

Diaz had become unpredictable and undependable, demonstrating a lack of professionalism, notably missing two scheduled press conference leading up to UFC 137 without a reasonable excuse. White, who is wont to give his fighters a second chance, moved Diaz down from the main event against welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre and put Condit in his place.

That should have taught Diaz a valuable lesson, but when St-Pierre had to back out because of an injury and opted to push back the fight with Condit to last Saturday, everything changed. Suddenly Diaz found himself back in the main event, which he won and then made an infamous callout of St.-Pierre, accusing him of faking an injury to avoid fighting him. No one had the temerity to say that to St-Pierre, who has fought with honour and dignity, and according to White he "absolutely flipped out."

But that made Diaz far more valuable, and when St-Pierre was sidelined with knee surgery, it moved Condit back into the picture, and Diaz earned a shot at the interim title. He couldn't have been more fortunate.

Fate seemed to have dealt him a winning hand, but the fact he tested positive is an indication that either he didn't think he'd be caught or didn't care.

The chemical compound of marijuana stays in the system anywhere from three days to three months, so some time after his victory over B.J. Penn last October at UFC 137 and his fight this past Saturday, Diaz decided to indulge. The question is why? This is my opinion.

Diaz showed multiple signs leading up to the fight that he was either troubled or confused, his personality had changed from a punk to somewhat of a pacifist, becoming almost friendly with Condit leading up to the fight whereas he had demonstrated a visible mean streak against previous opponents in the same situation.

He had become the object of a media spotlight he clearly didn't want, and showed noticeable examples of it bothering him. He talked of how he didn't like to fight because he didn't like hurting his opponents, and leading up to the bout against Condit he couldn't say for certain how long he'd continue in MMA. The signs were there of a problem.

Maybe he already knew what was ahead; maybe he knowingly indulged in marijuana to help deal with anxiety that he clearly demonstrated and his lucrative career in MMA became secondary.

Surely he had to know that win or lose, he was going to test positive and the result would be nullified. Maybe he just wanted to win and enjoy the few moments of glory. Only he can answer that, and if he already found opening up to the media an issue, this isn't going to be a time to give a no-holds-barred interview.

Critics can argue forever whether he should have been awarded the win on what he did against Condit and whether the judges screwed him, but Diaz showed an unwillingness to go on a full-scale attack, similar to what he did against Penn, making the end result cloudy instead of clear. He had every opportunity to mix it up with Condit, who executed a clever game plan in which he kept Diaz at a distance but was still able to land more strikes.

Diaz mocked his opponent and tried to psychologically sucker him into getting away from his strategy, but Condit would have none of it. He was fully focused going into the fight. This is an individual who once thought of quitting MMA because he was burned out, but the birth of his first child almost a year before, combined with having fights put on hold, gave him a renewed passion that clearly Diaz didn't -- or doesn't -- have.

It really doesn't matter whether Diaz should have been awarded the win because in the end he was heading for defeat anyway, except this would be by his own doing. Diaz stated after the fight he was done with MMA, explicitly saying "I don't want to play this game no more." Maybe he was already declaring what was about to happen, but it wasn't obvious.

He stood to make a lot of money, either from a rematch with Condit and/or a fight against St-Pierre. For someone who had come from Stockton, Calif., one of the roughest areas in the U.S., and still lives there and had risen above the surroundings because of his athletic talent, Diaz has made a huge mistake. While he's only 28, it is highly unlikely he will ever be able to restore his career to where he has another shot at a title.

Condit is the interim title holder and whether his next fight is against St-Pierre or someone else before that, the rematch against Diaz is over.

The absence from the game will either make Diaz hungry to return -- although it's highly unlikely it would be with the UFC judging by White's dissatisfaction -- or he will move on with his life. He said in a recent interview that if competing in triathlons paid him as much as fighting, he'd do it. He now has the opportunity to exercise his undeniable athletic talent in another way, but maybe what he needs first and foremost is some guidance or counseling.

His time away from MMA, whether it's a year or longer, will allow him to reflect on what really matters most to him.

Perry Lefko keeps you connected to all the news in the CFL on sportsnet.ca. He is also a regular contributor on other sports, including the UFC.