Another Cursed Match: Carter, Riggs, Fickett All Out

Now it's no UFC 85, but tonight's Strikeforce card has had its share of troubles, all centering on one ill-fated match. Originally it was going to be Shonie Carter vs Luke Stewart. Then Shonie was out:

Carter told Sherdog.com that he shattered a knuckle in his hand while training and was fearful he wouldn't pass the California State Athletic Commission's physical examination next week to proceed with the bout.

Then Joe Riggs stepped up, and just as quickly got knocked down by the CSAC.

So they bring in Drew Fickett on double extra totally unbelievable short notice.

And now, Drew Fickett is out too:

A source close to Fickett tells MMAjunkie.com that officials from Maximum Fighting Championships, for whom Fickett was supposed to fight on July 25, have vetoed the Strikeforce bout since it falls within the 45-day non-compete period of their event.

The whole story is pretty much par for the course except for the nasty catch 22 that Joe Riggs got caught in:

Riggs' agent, Ken Pavia, said his client was removed from the card after he disclosed that he'd taken prescription medication a few days earlier. In California, all combatants are required to fill out a pre-fight medical questionnaire listing all medications a fighter has recently used.

"Joe disclosed everything he consumed," said Pavia. "He had a prescription for everything. One of them he took three days ago. [He] wasn't sure if it was going to be in his system."

Pavia said the 25-year-old former state wrestling champion provided documentation of his medication to a CSAC physician, including paperwork for a prescription pain reliever.

After he was told his license would not be approved, an emotional and vocal Riggs was escorted from the weigh-in by his agent Pavia.

So you see, if a fighter tells the CSAC about prescription drugs he's taking, they won't license him to fight. And they won't test the fighter so he can prove the drugs aren't in his system:

CSAC protocol does not allow officials to publicly discuss an applicant's medical information, though Riggs was likely not tested for the drug because he was not officially licensed yet in the state and officials would not have had the jurisdiction to do so.

Joe Riggs is one hard luck dude.