I believe you are as curious as I am with the current situation in MMA/UFC and the fighters who smoke weed. The guys and gals who enter the octagon week in, week out to bring the exciting finest mixed martial art action. What can change if weed was legalized?
Well, while competing in UFC, marijuana in almost all of its forms remain a banned substance. But there’re other cannabinoids like CBD that are accepted at all times.
But why is weed banned in the first place? A little weed can’t harm anyone, is generally the mantra on this issue among the sport’s aficionados. But the governing bodies don’t see it as the fans do and they have set some rigid criteria that define whether a substance can be consumed or not.
Four years ago when some states including Nevada, California, Maine, and Massachusetts, more than 70% of the Americans were at a place to put on some wink and light up a fat one.
To date, people are not freaked of marijuana or weed as it was the norm in those old days, despite what your high school teacher may have told. It is becoming a familiar norm just like cigarettes and booze, without the baggage of being fatal.
What impacts can the legalization of weed have on MMA/UFC?
The main point here is anything that affects the country also impacts mixed martial arts. But the vital question is, how will weed legalization especially in the UFC hotspots like Nevada and California impact the sport? I am certain that Diaz fans are reading this, and boiling over with anticipation…
Initially, gird your lions, marijuana is not going to come off from the banned substances during UFC/MMA competitions any time soon. The federal regulation, sport regulation bodies, and athletic commission don’t follow each other in lock-step.
Even if the process started today, it takes the kind of time you can’t actually count on your finger before it is effective. The pro-MMA/UFC had their hell of a time trying to push its legalization in York amid its comparisons with the gay porn. You can just imagine the misinformation with weed when it’s put before a commission old enough to have watched “Reefer Madness” in theaters
One more side effect is that people are going to be popped for weed. Nevada is known to be the fight capital of the globe, with more top UFC fighters choosing to live there. They will always be surrounded by weed. Remember, these are people and not machines. In fact, most of them are under 20-somethings youths who are sometimes in pain, so the temptation is quite stark.
Even to an athlete like Jon Jones couldn’t resist the temptation to cocaine when at a party in Brazil and the drug has never done anything helpful ever.
But looking into the future, my verdict is that weed legalization will improve the quality of the sport. Common bruises and bumps that resulted from the training camps can be easily and quickly treated, as opposed to developing into full-blown injuries during the competition weeks.
Marijuana will definitely help fighters to recover faster between contests and make a 4-fight year a less abnormality. Also, who get in their own way mentally, can have a natural and simple remedy for their nerves.
Martial artists like Eddie Bravo, Nate Diaz, Sean O’Malley, and Nick Diaz among others have touted the benefits of smoking weed for years. Although things turned worse for Nick Diaz for breaching the USADA drug test during his last fight against Anderson Silva in 2015, we are seeing that the systems’ of these UFC fighters are creeping into MMA as time passes on.
Eventually, weed will be the common training regimen (if it isn’t already). There will come a time where joints after a workout will become the order of the day like the Blackzilians or the American Top Team. But this can get many current fighters in lots of trouble.
Bottom line
Until that time, the professional UFC/MMA fighters of the world should always mind themselves and abide by the current regulations. The only question is whether it will take 5, 10, or more years before marijuana can become completely legal. Till then, we’ll have to cross fingers when a Diaz gets booked.