He may have retired from mixed martial arts (MMA) after 18 years in the hurt business (see his farewell here), but Wanderlei Silva still had to appear before the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) today (Sept. 23, 2014) to answer for dodging a drug test earlier this year prior to UFC 175.
But Silva, yet again, was not present at the hearing.
In his first meeting with NSAC earlier in June, "The Axe Murderer" admitted he put on his best moves to escape from an official who was attempting to administer a surprise drug test because his system was full of diuretics.
Despite the admission, NSAC was none too pleased with Silva and ordered him back for another hearing; one his lawyer, Dr. Ross Goodman, tried to get out of by claiming that NSAC had no jurisdiction to punish Silva because he had yet to apply for a license to compete in Nevada prior to escape gate.
Apparently they do, as NSAC dropped the hammer down and banned him from competing in Nevada.
For life.
Interestingly enough, Silva's proposed opponent for UFC 175, Chael Sonnen, had his own issues with NSAC after he failed a couple of drug tests. Soon thereafter, "The American Gangster" announced his retirement from MMA, as well.
During his own hearing with NSAC earlier this year, Sonnen was forced to cough up some dough to cover doctor fees and was suspended for two years (details here). Fast forward a few months later, and Silva has also been punished by the NSAC shortly after announcing his own retirement.
In the end, no matter how hard he tried, Silva couldn't escape the wrath of NSAC, which also included a monetary fine of $70,000. Something UFC President Dana White was trying to tell us all along.