This interview first appeared in the Sports Edition of Fat Nugs Magazine, released May 2024.
The art of war is defined as the strategy, tactics, and techniques of combat. But what does that art form, that combat look like when you mix it with arguably the most diverse plant on the planet? It looks like the embodiment of flow, perfect movement, power, precision, and grace.
Max “Pain” Griffin (@maxpaingriffin) is a professional mixed martial artist and a highly (pun intended) successful and respected UFC-Ultimate Fighting Championship fighter. He also happens to be a very healthy, happy, charismatic, and outspoken cannabis advocate and consumer. His belief in the healing powers of cannabis was obvious from the very first moments we sat down for our interview.
Max Griffin’s Secret
Having competed in both the middle and welterweight divisions, Max has run the gauntlet of top fighters and has an impressive winning record of 20 wins: 9 by knockout, 2 by submission, and 9 by decision. He’s also won the Fight of the Night and Performance of the Night awards. That makes Max a prolific competitor, a winner, and someone who has to be in peak physical shape and mentally sharp at all times.
So how does Max do that? What is his secret? Diet, consistent training, cardio, rolling on the mat with his teammates, and sparring every chance he gets are the obvious necessities for Max, but one thing that may not be as obvious is his love for and consumption of cannabis.
“Cannabis helps me recover, allows me to relax, takes the edge off, and even helps me to get into that flow state and focus.” Griffin said.
During our interview Max and I were both high, smiling, and talking about all things cannabis and fighting, from learning that his first introduction to cannabis was with a friend in an apartment with some Orange Crush, to finding out if he thought about cannabis as a performance-enhancing substance.
”I wouldn’t do it on fight night, so probably not performance enhancing, but we do smoke sometimes before we practice and wrestle. We hit the bong, listen to music, it’s lit, and fun, and I love it, man! We’re adjusting positions, countering each other, staying in it, not ever getting tired.” Max said.
Around the room were references everywhere to both fighting and weed culture, and I even got to see the piece that Max’s friend and well-known cannabis artist, Greg Welch did for him. Being born in California and living in Sacramento means Max is closely connected to the cannabis scene and is lucky enough to have access to some of the best medicine on the planet from some of the best growers.
Like most fighters and the rest of the world that loves mixed martial arts and cannabis, we were all happy to hear that the UFC relaxed its stance on testing and now allows fighters to consume without fear of losing their careers. With that in mind, I asked Max if there was one thing he would like other athletes and other fighters to know about cannabis, and his response was exactly what so many of us who have loved this plant for decades know very well; “It’s a safe natural option for recovery, managing pain, helping with stress, and getting sleep” Max said.
