Former Pride and UFC fighter Wanderlei Silva has sued the Nevada State Athletic Commission, claiming that the commission overstepped their authority for issuing a lifetime ban in September of 2014.
Wanderlei Silva was slated to fight Chael Sonnen at UFC 175 in July of 2014, but evaded a random drug test in Nevada. He later revealed that his failure to comply with the test was because he had taken diuretics to help with problematic injuries. At the hearing, Wanderlei Silva’s attorney Ross Goodman claimed that the NSAC did not have the authority to test Silva because he was not yet a licensed fighter at the time of the test. Disenchanted with the UFC and the actions of the NSAC, Wanderlei Silva retired from MMA. Nonetheless, the NSAC hearing issued a lifetime ban and a $70,000 fine to Wanderlei Silva.
Ross Goodman states in the lawsuit,
“The NSAC, like any other agency, is a ‘creature’ of statue and attempts to expand jurisdiction over subject matter not conferred by the legislature is without authority of the law and void. Here, the legislature clearly defined the NSAC’s powers to ‘issuing and revoking licenses.’ Contrary to the wrongful action against [Silva], there exists no statutory authority, nor does the NSAC point to any, which allows it to expand its limited jurisdiction to include disciplining people who are not licensed by the agency,”
The suit is critical of the severity of the sentence to Silva, claiming “The retaliatory nature by the NSAC of imposing a career ending sanction based on a first offense is by nature arbitrary and capricious,”
Scifighting will have more on Wanderlei Silva’s lawsuit as the story develops. You can read the full suit and complaint as filed below:
A-14-710453-J-6563731 MPA Petitioner s Memorandum of Points and Authorities
