Nick Diaz kept quiet during his disciplinary hearing this afternoon before Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC), invoking his Fifth Amendment right as to not incriminate himself.
He broke that silence moments after the "ridiculous" decision was rendered -- a whopping $165,000 fine and a five-year ban from mixed martial arts (MMA) competition, which for all intents and purposes is a lifetime sentence for the 32-year-old Stockton, Calif., native.
And, unsurprisingly, he was not very happy.
"I'm pretty pissed," Diaz told ESPN.com. "I got into this sport for this exact reason, being stuck in a room with people like that. I wanted to tell them what I think. I wanted to tell each and every one of them they're a bunch of dorks. Everybody who sees them or knows who they are should tell them that. I would if it weren't for my experts advising me to keep my mouth shut. I wanted to get up and say, 'Look. You guys are way the f--- out of line.' "
Diaz's refusal to answer questions was a legal maneuver so that NSAC commissioners would focus on facts and evidence presented by his attorney, Lucas Middlebrook. However, it may have ultimately backfired.
"I think it was a completely arbitrary and capricious decision," Middlebrook said. "This was a kangaroo court ... their decision wasn't based on fact. It wasn't based on evidence. One commissioner said, 'Your attorneys were very persuasive, but you don't respect us. So here's a five-year ban.'"
Middlebrook confirmed that Diaz -- who tested positive for marijuana metabolites following a decision loss to Anderson Silva at UFC 183 on Jan. 31, 2015 -- intends to appeal the five-year suspension. Silva, meanwhile, received a $380,000 fine and one-year suspension because he failed several tests for anabolic steroids.
That's got Diaz all fired up, too -- check out the video above to hear his rant.
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