The White House Responds To Petition To Lift Nick Diaz’ Suspension

After a petition to lift Nick Diaz‘s MMA ban garnered over 100,000 signatures, the White House issued an official response. But even they, perhaps predictably, are unable to do anything about the suspension.

“The federal government plays no role in the disciplinary actions taken by state athletic commissions, so we are not in a position to address the specific request raised in your petition. State – in this case, the Nevada Athletic Commission – will generally be the best source for information about those kinds of issues,” said the White House in response to the petition.

In January, a post-fight drug test revealed that Diaz had marijuana metabolites in his system. On September the Nevada State Athletic Commission suspended Diaz for five years and fined him $165,000.

Despite the White House’s response, there seems to be progress on the legal front. Diaz posted in Instagram photo about his legal team working on his behalf and, in October, legal correspondent Amy Dardashtian tweeted that a settlement could be worked out sooner rather than later.

Just spoke with my legal team at Campbell & Williams and talks with the NV athletic commission are going well. We’re working hard with them to get this right. Thanks for the support. @cesargraciebjj @natediaz209 @krongraciejiujitsu @riokid @rcsspence @matheusandre1 @graciefighterlodi @graciearmy209kids #jiujitsu #lodijiujitsu #mma @ufc

A photo posted by nickdiaz209 (@nickdiaz209) on Oct 27, 2015 at 7:08pm PDT

Photo: Nick Diaz (L) and Anderson Silva trade punches in their middleweight bout during UFC 183 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on January 31, 2015 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Silva won by unanimous decision. (Photo by Steve Marcus/Getty Images)

Article by Joe Kozlowski