"Tommy Morrison Is Still HIV Positive" - Nevada Official

Warren Piece · 06-22-2007, 02:12 PM

The following is an article by Chuck Johnson in today's USA TODAY:

By Chuck Johnson, USA TODAY

With his comeback stalled amid allegations that he recently tested positive for HIV, heavyweight Tommy Morrison maintains he's free of the virus and plans to go before the Nevada State Athletic Commission to clarify his medical status and resume his boxing career.

"I'm getting tired of having to answer all these questions and people casting doubts," Morrison told USA TODAY on Thursday. "I've got a fight scheduled for July 27 in Albuquerque, but they want me to get this over with first. In the next week to 10 days, I'm going to Nevada, and I'll test again ... to clear this up."

In 1996, Morrison was denied a license and placed on indefinite suspension by the Nevada board after testing HIV positive before a fight in Las Vegas.

After 10½ years away from the ring, Morrison, 38, was allowed to fight Feb. 22 in West Virginia, a state that doesn't require blood testing. But he recently ran into a roadblock again when the Arizona Republic reported in the June 8 edition that Morrison recently tested positive for HIV.

Former associate Randy Lang told the newspaper that he stopped working for Morrison after results of Morrison's HIV tests were publicly misrepresented.

Nevada officials are adamant that Morrison's positive HIV test results in 1996 are accurate and that he has the virus.

"I hope he's HIV negative, I really do, but it doesn't seem likely," said Keith Kizer, executive director of the Nevada commission. "We'll wait and see what happens. He said he's been tested several times in recent years, but (we'll ask) what happened from 1996 and 2002, the years he won't talk about."

Margaret Goodman, chair of the Nevada commission's medical advisory board, was prompted to check on Morrison's status after learning about his comeback. She said she contacted John Hiatt at the diagnostics clinic where Morrison was tested in 1996.

"At my request, Dr. Hiatt reviewed the archived results yet again," Goodman said. "He says they (the positive results) are ironclad and unequivocal."

Morrison contends that he's been trying to get a copy of the original test results for the past 15 months.

"We've asked, but they can't come up with it," he said. "I don't think it ever existed."

Goodman said that's nonsense: "All Mr. Morrison has to do is contact the laboratory, and they would immediately release the results to him."

Well I guess thats that, now isn't it?

Rbagu3 · 06-22-2007, 02:14 PM

wow just wow, he shouldn't be able to step into an MMA ring or cage again

hohner · 06-22-2007, 02:15 PM

No offence but I'm sick of hearing about this guy. Until he starts having real MMA fights it shouldn't be an issue here.

Warren Piece · 06-22-2007, 02:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hohner

No offence but I'm sick of hearing about this guy. Until he starts having real MMA fights it shouldn't be an issue here.

Well thats just it, this ends his MMA aspirations right here.

Case closed, finally!

buckallred · 06-22-2007, 02:18 PM

I can't believe that Morrison's idiotic ramblings are given any credence at all.

It's real simple: There is no cure for HIV. Therefore, if Morrison was ever HIV positive in the past, he is HIV positive now.

End of discussion.

fried ectoplasm · 06-22-2007, 02:19 PM

Well, if he does manage to infect another person with the HIV virus, knowing that he is positive, he is up for manslaughter charges in just about every state in the union; lets just hope it never has to come to that.

I really think the combination of protein inhibitors and repeated blows to the head have caught up with this guy.

zooq · 06-22-2007, 02:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hohner

No offence but I'm sick of hearing about this guy. Until he starts having real MMA fights it shouldn't be an issue here.

No man thats not the right way to look at it, even if he's not having "Real" MMA fights he si still stepping in the ring/cage with another human being and putting that person at great risk of catching HIV if there was any cut or bleeding. Nobody deserved to catch HIV even if they arent a "real" MMA fighter.
This guy needs to stop playing around with his lawyer and their tricks and they need to take a real DNA-base DDR HIV test like the ones the porn stars take they are the most accurate and the public needs to know whats up.

Salmonella · 06-22-2007, 02:20 PM

The NSAC's been saying the same thing over and over, nothing new here. There are still a lot of questions about it.

Edit: So many of you on this thread need to read more about the subject before making an ill-informed post. I'm not saying Morrison doesn't have HIV (I certainly haven't seen his medical records) but he has tested negative on multiple occasions, with one test taken in front of the head of the Arizona athletic commission. There's definitely room for some doubt to be had before condemning the guy so wholeheartedly.