Henry Cejudo, an undefeated UFC flyweight and an Olympic gold-medal wrestler, announced Wednesday he will no longer compete in the state of Nevada following the state athletic commission's five-year suspension of Nick Diaz.
Cejudo's manager, Bill McFarlane, sent the news through a written statement to Ariel Helwani of MMA Fighting.
Henry Cejudo refuses to fight in Nevada in light of Nick Diaz's suspension -- http://t.co/8g7HWb9kY0
— MMAFighting.com (@MMAFighting) September 16, 2015
The statement read, in part:
I am absolutely appalled at how the NAC handled the Nick Diaz matter. The issue here is not the magnitude of the penalties assessed to Nick Diaz, it is the process, or lack thereof, in determining Nick Diaz’s guilt or innocence ... It is very unfortunate, but I feel it's prudent to let the UFC know that Henry Cejudo will not be fighting in Nevada.
On Monday, the Nevada State Athletic Commission suspended Diaz for five years and fined him $165,000 for failing three drug tests because of marijuana use. The decision drew immediate and widespread criticism across the sport for its severity and seemingly arbitrary nature.
Diaz's attorneys have indicated they plan to appeal the decision.
Though Cejudo (9-0) is not a major star in the UFC, the 28-year-old is considered one of the top prospects in the sport at 125 pounds. In 2008, he won a gold medal in freestyle wrestling at the Beijing Summer Olympics.
Cejudo's decision is a fairly unprecedented act of solidarity among UFC fighters.
The statement his manager issued concluded:
Others may want to roll the dice in Nevada, but I for one do not feel the NAC is capable of conducting itself in a manner consistent with their mission statement, appropriate enforcement of existing regulations, conducting business in a fair and unbiased manner, or the exercise of due process in their enforcement actions.
