Barnett Talks Out of Turn

Humility is something certain people have to learn through adversity. This is particularly true in combat sports, where the central conceit -- I’m tougher than you are -- requires a minimum amount of bravado. Roy Jones swaggered on for years, untouchable, until he got stopped in succession. He’s since turned into a swell guy. Probably not coincidence.

If anyone in MMA has put themselves in a position to get knocked down a peg, it’s Josh Barnett. The former UFC heavyweight champion has tested positive for steroids no fewer than three times in his career dating back to 2002. When he melted a cup in the summer of 2009, it brought down an entire promotion. (Though, honestly, this shouldn’t really be a knock on Barnett: If an event can’t tolerate the loss of a fighter, it has no business being in business.)

Barnett has been inactive since. According to a recent interview with Mauro Ranallo, it’s someone else’s fault.

"As soon as any promotion out there stops bullsh-tting and comes correct, that's all, [I’ll fight],” he told Ranallo. “If they want me to fight, all they got to do is step up to the plate, throw me an opportunity and don't put something in front of me that's a slap in my face or ridiculous."

Let’s stretch an analogy a bit here and try to find some common ground between Barnett and the actor Robert Downey, Jr. In the late 1990s, Downey had documented issues with illicit drug use which eventually ended with his incarceration. When he was released in 2000, it was not Downey who stormed studio doors with demands for an eight-figure payday: Businesses forced to depend on human error considered him a high-risk employee. He got some TV work for a fraction of his usual compensation. (And promptly relapsed.) You know the rest of the bit. Downey eventually proved himself again, but not before circulating in smaller films and bolstering the confidence of potential employers.

Acts of criminal or moral ineptitude require a degree of contrition. If Barnett is insinuating he’s being lowballed by promotions, he ignores their need for risk assessment. If you’re popped for drugs, you cannot fight. If you cannot fight, you’ve wasted event dollars in promotion and have provoked an adverse effect on business.

It appears Barnett would prefer to skip the repaving stage and head directly to his former days of appreciable salaries. To be that audacious, you almost have to be on drugs.