UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier is the latest fighter to throw his support behind the embattled Nick Diaz.
"It's wrong, it's 100 percent wrong and I hope it's overturned," Cormier told MMAFighting.com's Dave Doyle of Diaz's suspension.
In what many around the sport considered a grave injustice, the Nevada State Athletic Commission hammered Diaz with an unprecedented five-year suspension after he tested positive for marijuana metabolites following UFC 183 in January.
"I thought it was horrible," Cormier said. "You try not to pay too much attention to the internet. But I've got twitter, and you see things. Sometimes you see some of the other things guys have done. And you see, compared to what Nick has done, I understand Nick is a repeat offender, but there's no reason to, I mean, come on. Five years?"
Anderson Silva - Diaz's opponent at UFC 183 - tested positive for PEDs before and after the bout, and was only handed a one-year suspension by the NSAC.
"He should have gotten a harsh punishment, but it went above and beyond," Cormier said. "A lot of that has to do with the way Nick lives his life. He is who he is, man. Fighters love Nick Diaz. We all love him. He is who he is. He's not going to apologize for being who he is."
Despite being in Diaz's corner, Cormier will not be joining the growing legion of fighters willing to boycott Nevada in protest.
"If I didn't want to fight in Las Vegas, it would be because when I went to my commission meeting, they didn't even know my damn name," Cormier said. "That pissed me off more than Nick Diaz. I don't care, I'll fight anywhere I get paid. But they didn't even know my name. They were all 'Hey Floyd! Hey Jon Jones, you're great! Oh you, what's your name again?'"
